Avery  Architectural  and  Fine  Arts  Library 
Gift  of  Seymour  B.  Durst  Old  York  Library 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2013 


6 


http://archive.org/details/weekinwallstreetOOjack 


A  WEEK 


IN 


WALL  STREET 


BY 


ONE  WHO  KNOWS 


NEW.YORK: 
PUBLISHED  FOR  THE  BOOKSELLERS. 


1841. 


%  JAN  8  1919 


Entered  according  to  the  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1841, 
BY  FREDERICK  JACKSON, 
In  the  Clerk's  office  of  District  Court  of  the  Southern  District 

New-York. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS, 


CHAPTER    L— Introduction— The    origin  of 

Joint  Stock  Companies,  and 
Brokers. 

CHAPTER  It— The  History  of   the  Morrison 

Kennel — Nicholas  the  1st. — 
A  Stock  Speculation. 

CHAPTER  III.— State  Stocks— History  of  the 

Morrison  Kennel  continued 
— Introduction  of  new  cha. 
racters — The  U.  S.  Bank. 

CHAPTER  IV. — How   Stocks  are    bought  and 

sold — How  Brokers  get  out 
of  a  had  Speculation— How 


iV  TABLE  OP  CONTENTS. 

money  is  sometimes  made  by 
*  doing    a    losing    business — 

How  Discounts  are  made  and 

obtained. 
CHAPTER  V.— The  Defaulter. 
CHAPTER  VI. — A  Panic. 


PREFACE. 


The  following  pages  were  written  during 
leisure  hours  of  the  last  six  or  eight  weeks,  of 
which  "  the  times"  have  thrown  rather  too  many 
upon  the  writer's  hands ;  and  the  statement  of 
this  fact,  I  conceive  to  be  a  tacit  admission,  that 
such  hours  might  have  been  better  employed. 

They  were  originally  composed  for  the  writer's 
own  amusement ;  to  beguile  the  tediousness  of 
otherwise  idle  time.  And  not  the  least  motive 
for  this  indulgence  was,  a  desire  to  abstract  the 
mind  from  too  near  a  contemplation  of  the  dark 
side  of  that  picture,  which  I  have  described  as  a 
panic.  They  were  not  written  in  the  first  place, 


Vi  PREFACE. 

with  any  view  to  publication,  but  as  each  chap- 
ter was  successively  read  in  the  presence  of 
friends,  and  principally  for  amusement^  those 
friends  at  length  advised  their  publication  ;  and 
with  their  advice  they  have  been  submitted  to 
the  press,  in  the  original  manuscript,  almost  with- 
out correction, 

The  writer  has  no  claims  to  literary  qualifi- 
cations, and  of  course  he  seeks  no  reward  of 
literary  reputation.  Were  it  otherwise  the  reader 
would  at  once  convict  him  of  his  presumption. 

Those  persons  who  are  acquainted  with  the 
business  of  Wall-street,  will  be  able  to  judge  for 
themselves  of  the  truth  of  the  descriptions  ;  and 
those  who  have  not  that  opportunity  of  judging, 
are  respectfully  requested  to  consider  the  reflec- 
tions and  moralizing,  occasionally  introduced,  as 
made  in  seriousness,  and  the  rest  as  the  truth  in 
burlesque. 

That  there  is  existing,  at  the  present  time,  a 
demoralised  condition  of  principle,  feeling,  and 
practice,  pervading  the  country  throughout,  in 
regard  to  pecuniary  transactions  and  engage- 
ments, deserving  a  severe  castigation,  will  not 
I  believe  be  denied  by  any  one ;  and  for  the 


PREFACE. 


vii 


vindication  of  good  faith  and  honesty,  the  writer 
could  wish  that  the  subject  had  been  taken  in 
hand,  by  some  one  more  skilful  than  himself  in 
the  use  of  the  scourge. 

The  proper  correction  of  public  morals  is  pub- 
lic opinion ;  but  so  long  as  public  opinion  is  in- 
different to  the  innovations  that  have  grown  up, 
and  so  long  as  pecuniary  credit,  and  the  posts  of 
honor,  trust  and  profit,  are  so  frequently  accord- 
ed to  the  most  successful  in  their  negotiations  or 
their  intrigues,  without  regard  to  the  principles, 
or  practices,  that  have  placed  them  where  they 
are— so  long  we  may  expect  nothing  but  the  in- 
crease of  those  mischiefs,  of  which  so  many  now 
complain. 

I  confess,  that  were  I  to  write  the  same  pages 
over  again,  with  a  view  to  publication,  I  would 
alter,  amend,  and  expunge  much  that  is  here. 
But  as  I  am  now  engaged  in  something  that 
will  afford  more  pleasure  in  its  pursuit,  and  more 
1  profit  if  attained,.  I  have  not  time  for  this  pur- 
pose at  present.  And  since  the  present  is  a 
time,  when  men's  minds  are  alive  to  the  subjects 
which  I  have  endeavored  to  bring  out  in  ridi- 
cule, I  submit  the  whole  for  what  it  is  worth. 


Vlll 


PREFACE. 


The  introduction  of  vulgar  wit  may  serve  to 
amuse  some,  but  it  is  not  a  passport  to  men's 
good  sense  ;  and,  although  it  may  sometimes 
make  a  book  sell,  it  is  not,  in  my  opinion,  the 
best  way  to  convince  of  the  truth.  And  the  only 
excuse  for  indulging  in  it  is,  that  the  subjects  of 
remark,  and  the  slang  frequent  in  Wall-street, 
are  not  of  that  character  which  cultivate  the 
delicate  sensibilities — nor  can  they  be  pourtrayed 
to  the  life,  by  such  language  or  figures,  as  should 
grace  the  conversation  and  writings  of  a  gentle- 
man. 

The  practice  of  making  a  book  personal,  is, 
and  ought  to  be  condemned  ;  and,  if  it  is  ob- 
jected that,  in  this,  I  have  called  persons  by  their 
right  names,  or  pointed  too  clearly  at  individuals, 
the  answer  is,  that,  except  in  the  case  of  one 
martial  spirit,  the  notable  Major  Downing,* 
whom  I  have  shorn  of  a  little  of  his  patriotism 
and  courage.  I  have  in  "no  instance  made  allu- 
sions which  have  not  been  directly  applied,  and 


*  We  intend  to  refer  to  Major  2nd.,  the  bosom  friend  of 
General  Jackson,  not  the  original  Major,  down  east. 


PREFACE.  IX 

treated  with  much  greater  asperity,  by  all  the 
newspapers  of  the  day.  And  this  fact,  I  conceive, 
has  given  me  licence,  since  it  would  be  folly  to 
wing  a  shaft  of  invective  or  ridicule,  if  it  aimed 
at  no  object. 

The  Major,  I  must  suppose,  will  not  consider 
himself  aggrieved,  because,  from  his  position,  he 
was  the  only  person  whom  I  could  conveniently 
make  tributary  to  the  information  I  wish  to 
give;  and,  since  he  has  so  often  asserted  his  cou- 
rage, without  fairly  acknowledging  his  identity, 
he  has  no  cause  to  complain  at  being  assailed 
on  that  point 

The  remark  will  generally  hold  true,  that 
whatever  requires  to  be  explained,  or  excused, 
is  always  wrong  ;  but,  in  this  case,  I  think 
it  will  not  apply.  I  would  therefore  be  un- 
derstood as  excusing  only  the  faults  of  the  book, 
and  not  the  object  at  which  it  is  aimed. 

And,  lastly,  the  writer  cannot  help  say- 
ing that,  in  the  face  of  the  trite  remark  that, 
"  those  who  live  in  glass  houses  should  not 
throw  stones,"  he  will  not  deny,  that,  in  the  ex- 
pressive language  of  Wall-street,  he  has  himself 
been  "  flunked     and,  with  this  candid  acknow- 


X 


PREFACE. 


ledgement,  which  will,  perhaps,  satisfactorily 
account  for  the  production  of  the  book,  in  the 
minds  of  those  who  may  please  to  consider  it  an 
effusion  of  spleen, — he  subscribes  himself — 

Respectfully, 

The  Author, 


N.  B.  It  is  perceived  that  a  considerable  num- 
ber of  errors  have  escaped  notice  and  correction, 
in  the  following  pages  ;  but  as  they  affect  only 
the  orthography  and  the  grammar,  without  de- 
tracting from  the  truth,  or  the  moral  of  the  story, 
I  have  thought  it  best  to  leave  their  correction 
to  the  intelligent  and  good  humored  reader, 
rather  than  mar  a  page  with  a  formidable  list  of 
errata — except,  that,  in  one  instance,  as  a  mere 
friendly  suggestion,  I  would  request  the  substi- 
tution, on  129th  page,  7th  line,  of  "steward- 
ship" for  "friendship  " 


CHAPTER  I. 


INTRODUCTION. — THE  ORIGIN  OF  JOINT  STOCK 
COMPANIES  AND  BROKERS. 

As  the  practice  of  some  readers  is  to  begin  in 
the  middle  and  read  a  book  backwards,  I  respect- 
fully request  those  who  may  open  here,  to  begin 
at  the  beginning  and  read  the  preface  first.  In 
case  of  any  captiousness  of  disposition  on  their 
parts,  they  may  thereby  save  themselves  a  good 
deal  of  ill  nature,  and  quarrelling  with  the  au- 
thor. But  if  any  one  is  perverse,  and  chooses  to 
go  on  without  taking  my  advice,  I  will  not  hold 
myself  accountable  for  the  preservation  of  his 
temper,  nor  even  of  this  book  ;  for  I  am  not  sure 
but  he  may  throw  it  in  the  fire,  before  he  gets 
through  the  first  or  second  chapter.  But,  should 
he  even  persevere  and  go  through,  until  he  re- 
ceives my  parting  14  salaam,"  still  I  request  him 


2        HOW  BOOKS  ARE  WONT  TO  BE  MADE. 

to  turn  back  and  read  the  preface,  that  he  may 
see  what  the  writer  thinks  of  his  own  book. 

It  is  usual  with  authors,  in  the  outset  of  their 
story,  to  introduce  to  their  readers  their  Hero  and 
Heroine,  with  elaborate  descriptions  of  their  per- 
sons, manners,  habits,  dress,  &c.  &c. ;  all  of  which 
is  intended,  either  to  prepare  the  reader's  mind 
for  the  very  interesting  positions  which  these  per- 
sonages are  designed  to  fill,  or  to  amuse  those 
who  are  fond  of  that  kind  of  portraiture.  But  in 
this  history  of  "  a  week  in  Wall-street,"  there  is 
neither  hero  nor  heroine,  but  a  great  number  and 
variety  of  characters,  each  of  whom  lives  out  his 
sunny  hour,  and  passes  again  into  oblivion. 
Some  there  are,  it  is  true,  who,  from  a  crawling 
worm,  pass  into  a  chrysalis,  and  appear  to  be 
dead  for  a  time,  not  only  to  revive  again  with 
new  life  and  beauty,  but  to  soar  a  lofty  height 
into  the  world  of  fashion,  and  boast  the  gayest 
plumage  among  those  who  float  on  the  wind  of 
fortune's  fickle  favors. 

The  veritable  history  of  Diedrich  Knicker- 
bocker was  not  a  truer  story  than  is  every  whit 
of  this  history  of"  a  week  in  Wall-street ;"  but  alas 
for  the  mutations  in  all  human  affairs! — a  sad 


HOW  NEW- YORK  BECAME  SO  POPULOUS.  3 

change  has  come  over  the  waking  dreams  of  the 
inhabitants  of  this  goodly  city,  since  the  days 
when  Petrus  Stuyvesant  surrendered  the  govern- 
ment of  Niew-Amsterdam  to  the  conquest-loving 
Briton. 

From  that  day,  when  first  its  name  was 
changed  to  New- York,  it  has  not  ceased  to  be 
overrun  by  the  stragglers  from  every  country 
and  clime,  but  especially  by  those  cunning  vaga- 
bonds from  Connecticut,  and  her  sister  states, 
who  had  well  nigh  taken  in  their  toils  the  vene- 
rable Petrus  and  his  jolly  trumpeter,  Antony. 
And  they  have  now  trodden  down,  or  overturned, 
every  remnant  of  social  order,  that  was  so  remark- 
able in  the  time  of  the  honest  Dutchman.  In 
one  respect,  at  least,  these  interlopers  seem  to  be 
the  favored  of  heaven — for  their  seed  has  multi- 
plied as  the  sands  on  the  sea  shore ;  and  it  is 
shrewdly  suspected,  by  some,  that  the  gambols  of 
the  cunning  Antony  with  the  lasses  of  New- 
Haven,  in  his  famous  journey  thither,  may  have 
had  some  hand  in  this,  since  never  was  a  people 
known  who  could  blow  the  trumpet  of  their  own 
fame,  better  than  these  same  descendants  from 
the  colony  of  New-Haven. 


4  THE  OLD  WALL  BROKEN  DOWN. 


From  their  love  of  continual  change — which 
they  call  improvement — they  had  no  sooner 
gained  a  footing  in  the  city,  than  they  persuaded 
the  honest  Dutchmen  to  break  down  the  city 
wall,  which  had  hitherto  prevented  them  from 
robbing  the  cabbage  garden  or  tapping  the  hol- 
lands  of  the  rich  burghers,  and  which,  some  have 
said,  was  erected  partly  to  prevent  their  too  fre- 
quent solace  of  themselves  with  the  softer  beau- 
ties concealed  by  close  caps  and  short  petticoats. 
And  they  further  persuaded  them  to  convert  the 
ground  into  a  street,  thence  called  "  Wall-street  f 
which,  being  the  scene  of  their  first  victory  over 
that  prejudice  which  prefers  to  keep  folks  honest 
when  they  are  so,  has  ever  since  continued  to  be 
the  focus  of  all  enterprises  undertaken  for  one's 
own  benefit,  to  be  accomplished  by  other  peo- 
ples' means.  And  it  is  even  said,  that  the  pro- 
jectors of  this  work,  in  reality,  designed  only  to 
gain  for  themselves  unobstructed  access  to  the 
good  living,  and  the  pretty  damsels,  of  Niew-Am- 
sterdam,  now  New -York.  Want  of  means  them- 
selves to  perform  so  great  a  work,  first  suggested 
to  them  the  idea  of  a  Stock  Company,  for  objects 
of  public  improvement ;  the  principal  virtue  of 


MR.  SOLOMON  SINGLE-EYE. 


5 


which  is,  to  replenish  the  fortunes  of  those  who 
plan  and  conduct  it,  as  is  more  than  suspected, 
since  most  of  the  money  generally  stops  short  of 
its  intended  application,  and  can  only  be  account- 
ed for  by  mistakes  in  the  original  estimates,  or 
expenses  preliminary  to  the  commencement  of 
the  real  work. 

The  good  Dutchmen  at  first  looked  astonished 
at  a  project  so  bold  and  vast ;  they  next  smoked 
a  pipe  and  doubted  ;  but  on  an  explanation  being 
given  by  Mr.  Solomon  Sinde-eye,  of  all  its  ad- 
vantages, accompanied  with  a  prompt  offer  to 
embark  his  whole  fortune,  and  give  his  services 
for  nothing,  the  shares  were  eagerly  caught  up. 
And  as  the  scheme  rose  in  public  estimation,  the 
shares  rose  in  nominal  value,  greatly  above  their 
subscription  price  ;  and  such  was  the  clamor  for 
more,  that  the  directors — having  nothing  in  view 
but  the  public  good — disinterestedly  consented 
to  sell  out  theirs  at  an  advance  of  only  seventy- 
five  per  cent.,  in  order  to  appease  public  opinion, 
in  respect  of  their  apparent  partiality  in  having 
retained  any  for  themselves.  Still',  however,  the 
inquiry  for  shares  was  eager  and  constant,  so 

great  was  the  public  confidence  in  the  integrity 

2* 


6 


MR.  JACOB  BROKER. 


and  shrewdness  of  the  directors,  and  of  Mr.  Sin- 
gle-eye, particularly. 

At  this  juncture,  Mr.  Jacob  Broker  opened  an 
office  near  the  wall-street,  that  was  to  be,  for  the 
sale  and  purchase  of  shares. 

Mr.  Broker  was  a  man  of  great  shrewdness 
and  penetration.  His  education,  to  be  sure,  had 
been  somewhat  neglected,  having  been  superin- 
tended in  his  youth  by  a  strolling  professor  of 
the  "  black  art,"  whom  to  follow,  he  ran  away 
from  home  at  the  age  of  fourteen.  But  his  genius  * 
was  of  that  universal  kind  which  all  men  desire 
and  but  few  possess— and  hence  the  facility  with 
which  he  adapted  himself  to  his  new  employ- 
ment. His  initiation  into  the  black  art  now 
stood  him  instead  of  capital,  and  made  it  easy  for 
him  to  convince  the  honest  Dutchmen  of  his 
power  to  turn  "  metals  of  drossiest  ore  to  purest 
gold."  To  him,  therefore,  they  all  went,  whether 
to  buy  or  to  sell  shares  in  the  Wall-street  Stock 
Company.  And  as  he  had  often  learned  by  the 
sad  vicissitudes  of  life,  the  necessity  of  turning 
an  honest  penny  for  himself,  he  reasoned  as  all 
philosophers  would  do  in  the  same  circum- 
stances, "  that  if  he  took  not  the  tide  of  fortune 


HONESTY  AND  DISINTERESTEDNESS.  7 

at  its  flood,  he  might  again  suffer  under  the  same 
unhappy  conviction."  In  other  words,  he  thought, 
and  acted  accordingly,  that  if  he  did  not  embrace 
the  opportunity  to  improve  his  fortune  when  it 
offered,  it  might  never  present  itself  again.  He 
shrewdly  guessed  that  he  might  greatly  aid  the 
rise  in  the  value  of  the  shares  by  appearing  to  be 
entirely  disinterested — while  at  the  same  time 
he  contrived,  generally,  to  be  the  real  purchaser 
when  people  employed  him  to  sell,  and  the  seller 
when  they  employed  him  to  buy :  by  which 
means,  as  the  stock  gradually  rose  in  the  market, 
— the  commission  being  considerable,  the  profit 
more — and  as  he  bought  and  sold  the  whole  num- 
ber of  shares  several  times  over,  he  was  enabled 
to  abstract  from  the  pockets  of  the  honest  Dutch- 
men and  placing  it  in  his  own,  in  solid  cash? 
nearly  the  whole  amount  of  the  nominal  rise  in 
value  on  all  the  shares. 

He  was  of  course  a  man  of  substance,  made  so 
by  his  wits,  and  at  the  expense  of  the  burghers 
of  New- York. 

That  he  was  a  strictly  honest  man,  is  quite 
certain  ;  for  his  old  master  of  the  u  black  art"  is 
known  to  have  said,  that  when  he  paid  him  a 


8  PRINCIPLES  OF  TRADE. 

secret  visit,  and  suggested  the  propriety  of  manu- 
facturing a  few  certificates  of  shares,  to  meet  the 
urgency  of  demand,  Jacob  replied,  that  "  if  de- 
tected it  would  spoil  the  profits  of  his  trade,  and 
therefore,  in  honor,  he  could  not  consent  to  the 
proposal," 

He  honestly  paid  his  debts,  also,  for  the  same 
reason,  and  as  a  man  of  public  spirit,  lent  his 
means  to  assist  in  building  the  "  old  jail,"  to  con- 
fine all  those  rogues  in,  who  could  not  pay  theirs. 

To  be  sure,  he  acted  on  the  principle  that  there 
is  no  friendship  in  trade,  and  that  a  bargain  is  a 
bargain,  however  made,  and  must  be  fulfilled. 
What  if  his  customers  did  pay  him  a  commission? 
he  sold  only  his  services,  not  his  wits ;  and  them 
he  had  a  risrht  to  use  for  his  own  benefit.  He 
had  long  since  learned,  in  his  profession  of  the 
"  black  art,"  that  the  measure  of  success  depend- 
ed on  the  closeness  of  his  secret,  and  if  people 
did  not  know  his  arts,  he  thought  it  but  right 
that  they  should  pay  for  being  amused  by  them  ; 
and  following  this  mode  of  reasoning,  in  the  scale 
of  progression  upward  to  the  higher  sciences,  he 
judged  rightly,  "that  if  people  were  ignorant 
they  must  pay  for  instruction." 


MORAL  REFLECTIONS.  9 

Skilfulness  in  trade  was,  in  his  opinion,  justly 
placed  at  the  head  of  moral  science,  of  which  he 
had  now  become  a  professor  ;  and  why  should 
he  be  expected  to  impart  what  he  knew  without 
a  "  quid  pro  quo  ?"  Not  he  ;  but  rather  follow- 
ing the  plain  dictates  of  wisdom,  he  would  learn 
all  he  could,  and  impart  nothing. 

If  he  knew  better  how  to  make  a  bargain  than 
his  customers  did,  that  was  their  fault,  not  his. 
People  should  look  before  they  leap,  and  look  too 
with  their  own  eyes,  not  attempt  to  borrow  his  ; 
they  should  know  his  mode  of  business  before 
they  came  to  him;  not  come  and  complain  after- 
wards. 

These  reflections  while  they  clearly  show  the 
astuteness  of  his  mind,  also  suggest  the  reasons 
why  stock  rose  rapidly ;  and  point  out  the  means 
by  which  Mr.  Broker  pocketed  nearly  all  the  ad- 
vance himself, — without  ever  retaining  more 
than  ten  shares  in  his  hands  at  any  one  time. 

In  time  Mr.  Broker  became  a  sage,  and,  as  a 
fruit  of  his  wisdom,  left  behind  him  a  code  of 
laws  which  have  ever  since  been  the  standard 
of  Wall-street. 

We  shall  have  frequent  occasion  to  refer  to 


10  VIRTUE  OF  CORPORATIONS. 

points  in  this  code,  but,  for  the  present,  will  only 
mention,  that  he  improved  upon  the  great  La- 
cedemonian, who  is  said  to  have  made  a  law 
that  placed  the  crime  of  stealing  only  in  detec- 
tion— Mr.  Broker  placed  it  only  in  the  punish- 
ment. It  was  of  no  consequence  that  a  man 
should  be  found  out  in  his  roguery — that  only 
established  his  character  for  shrewdness — a  word 
of  modern  coinage,  which  some  silly  and  old 
fashioned  people  have  supposed  to  be,  only  a 
mitigated  term  for  dishonesty.  He  never  became 
a  criminal  until  the  law  reached  him  with  pun- 
ishment ;  and  the  merit  of  his  character,  as  well 
as  the  measure  of  his  success,  depended  entirely 
on  the  length  he  could  go,  and  the  frequency  of 
his  exploits,  and  still  escape  the  lash  of  the  law. 
— And  herein  is  seen  the  peculiar  virtue  and 
particular  wisdom  of  those  contrivances  called 
Corporations,  and  Joint  Stock  Companies,  of 
which  Mr.  Broker  was  a  great  encourager.  An 
ingenious  device,  wherein  an  imaginary  body 
alone  is  made  accountable  for  the  acts  of  its 
members  ;  while  the  real  actors  may  hide  be- 
hind it,  as  long  as  it  has  power  to  protect  them, 
and  scamper  off  without  fear,  when  it  has  not. 


DISCOVERY  IN  NATURAL  HISTORY.  11 

It  has  also  this  peculiar  property,  that,  when 
the  directors  have  taken  to  their  heels,  like  the 
ignis-fatuus,  the  farther  you  pursue  it  the  farther 
it  recedes ;  and  he  who  follows  it  long  will,  very 
likely,  get  stuck  in  the  swamp  from  whose  foul 
vapours  it  has  been  generated :  and,  at  most,  if 
fairly  got  hold  of,  it  is  never  found  to  consist  of 
any  thing  more  than  a  worthless  bit  of  parchment. 

We  have  said  that  Mr.  Broker  was  a  man  of 
universal  genius.  In  proof  of  which,  he  essen- 
tially improved  the  vocabulary  of  English;  and 
in  two  particulars,  conclusively  shew  that  John- 
son and  Buffon  are  in  error,  viz. — that  a  Bear 
means  a  man  who  has  no  shares  in  the 
Stocks — one  stripped — in  an  em-bar-assed  con- 
dition, and  that  a  Bull  means  a  man  who  has 
more  shares  than  he  can  keep,  and  has  gored 
his  neighbour  to  procure  them. 

His  was  the  first  Broker's  office  ever  establish- 
ed in  the  city  of  New  York  ;  and  from  him  have 
descended  all  the  race  of  brokers  which  have 
since  congregated  in  the  region  round  about 
Wall  Street.  Whether  his  posterity  have  an- 
swered Dr.  Johnson's*  definition  of  the  word 
*  See  Boswell's  posthumous  edition. 


12       SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  GOVERNMENT. 

broker,  viz :  "  A  negotiator  between  two  parties 
who  contrives  to  cheat  both,"  will  be  seen  in 
the  course  of  this  history, 

When  the  gallant  Col.  Nicholls  had.  in  the 
name  of  the  crown  of  Great  Britain,  taken  full 
possession  of  the  city  and  territory  of  New  Am- 
sterdam, and  bestowed  upon  it  the  name  of  his 
patron  the  Duke  of  York  ;  by  way  of  conciliat- 
ing the  Burghers,  he  left  them  undisturbed  in 
all  their  civil  and  domestic  privileges,  without 
embarrassing  them  with  the  intricacies  of  British 
laws.  And  in  those  days  of  simple  legislation, 
the  government  had  not  yet  learned  the  way  to 
purchase  power,  and  make  people  dishonest,  by 
selling  corporate  privileges.  And  demagogues 
had  not  yet  learned  to  claim  the  monopoly,  as  a 
reward  for  their  intrigues.  Consequently,  Mr. 
Single-Eye,  and  his  coadjutors  in  the  matter  of 
the  Wall-street  Stock  Company,  had  the  power 
of  fixing  things  all  their  own  way ;  that  is,  they 
made  all  their  own  laws,  rules,  and  regulations, 
without  let  or  hindrance  of  any  kind.  And  so  in- 
geniously were  they  contrived,  that,  by  their  natu- 
ral operation,  the  money  which  came  in  by  sub- 
scription, all  leaked  out  again  exactly  at  the  right 


WHAT  A  DIRECTOR  SHOULD  BR.  13 

place  and  at  the  ri^ht  time.  Since  that  time,  the 
wisdom  of  the  Legislators  of  most  of  the  states  has 
decreed,  that  people  shall  not  associate  in  bodies 
for  purposes  of  roguery,  without  first  buying  a 
licence ;  and,  under  the  name  of  Charters,  they 
will  sell  licences  to  cheat  the  public,  as  the  Pope 
sells  plenary  indulgences,  to  replenish  a  wasted 
Treasury,  (vide  the  great  state  of  Pennsyl- 
vania and  the  U.  S.  Bank.) 

It  is  worthy  of  remark- and  imitation,  that  nei- 
ther the  president  nor  the  cashier  of  the  Wall-street 
Stock  Company  ever  ran  away  with  a  dollar  of 
their  money ;  so  rigid  a  surveillance  did  Mr. 
Single-Eye  keep  over  its  affairs.  Although 
nothing  but  a  director  himself,  he  held  the  true 
doctrine,  that  directors  should  really  be  the  head 
of  an  institution,  and  that  the  president  and 
cashier  were  merely  heads  of  the  clerks.  Mr. 
Single-Eye  was  moreover  of  opinion,  that  it  was 
better  for  a  director  to  hustle  the  money  into  his 
own  pocket,  and  make  sure  of  the  gain,*than  to 
suffer  another  to  do  it,  and  incur  the  odium 
himself.  To  be  sure,  he  was  somewhat  at  vari- 
ance with  Mr.  Broker  on  this  point,  but  Single- 

3 


14  DEGENERACY  OF  OUR  DAY'S. 

Eye  had  the  power,  and  there  is  nothing  like 
that  for  enforcing  a  good  reason. 

And  here  I  cannot  forbear  to  remark  on  the 
degeneracy  of  these  days,  when  directors  so 
often  give  up  all  management  to  the  presidents 
and  cashiers,  thus  leading  them  into  temptation, 
and  provoking  them  to  do  that,  which  they 
might  do  themselves  with  greater  safety,  be- 
cause they  are  less  immediately  responsible. 
Alas  !  how  many  menr  with  their  families,  have 
been  ruined  by  this  cruel  lack  of  vigilance. 

I  should  not  have  said  so  much  on  the  origin 
of  stock  companies  and  brokers,  but  that  I  thought 
v  it  necessary,  to  a  more  perfect  understand- 
ing of  what  shall  follow.  Having  said  so 
much,  it  is  proper  that  I  should  make  known  the 
fate  of  this  first  attempt  at  stock  jobbing.  And 
it  is  especially  necessary  that  I  should  do  so,  for 
the  benefit  of  those  widows  and  orphans,  who 
have  any  doubts  about  the  entire  safety  of  invest- 
ing their  little  fortunes  in  the  like  securities. 

Every  body  has  read  of  the  severe  reproof  once 
administered,  by  a  Spanish  lady,  to  a  gentleman 
who  complained  of  the  indelicacy  of  their  statu- 
ary.   She  told  him  that,  had  his  own  mind  been 


STOCK  COMPANIES. 


15 


pure,  he  would  never  have  discovered  indelicacy 
in  what  was  "  true  to  nature." 

It  is  well  known  that  stock  companies,  such  as 
banks,  insurance  companies,  trust  companies,  and 
the  like,  are  got  up  entirely  by  disinterested  men, 
for  the  purpose  of  affording  an  opportunity  for 
ladies  of  a  "  certain  age,"  widows,  and  orphans,  to 
invest  what  little  funds  they  have  in  safety,  with 
the  certainty  of  a  moderate  income.  Ac- 
cordingly, whenever  a  company  is  started,  and 
the  stock  all  subscribed  for  by  the  managers,  this 
class  of  people  are  particularly  favored,  in  being 
permitted  to  purchase  some  shares  at  a  trifling 
premium  of  ten  or  fifteen  per  cent.,  and  urged  to 
take  an  interest  before  they  shall  go  higher.  And 
then,  after  two  or  three  years'  refusal  to  make  any 
dividend,  for  fear  they  might  spend  it  impru- 
dently, the  same  gentlemen  who  sold  the  stock, 
are  willing  to  buy  it  back  again  at  a  discount  of 
only  fifty  per  cent. ;  and  the  poorspinster  is  per- 
fectly satisfied  of  the  safety  of  her  investment, 
because,  having  once  parted  with  the  money,  she 
can  never  get  it  back  again.  This  class  of  stock- 
holders are  also  particularly  favored  and  accept- 
able, because  they  never  want  to  borrow,  and 


16  fcVIL  TO  HIM  WHO  EVIL  THINKS. 


never  find  fault  with  the  management ;  and  if,  by 
chance,  they  should  suspect  themselves  to  be 
badly  used,  a  tear  shed  in  secret  is  the  only  com- 
plaint they  ever  m  ike. 

I  will  lay  it  down  as  a  rufe,  therefore,  that 
whoever  distrusts  the  integrity  and  good  inten- 
tions of  those  gentlemen,  who  get  up  a  stock 
company,  and  collect  within  its  vaults  the  wid- 
ow's mite  and  the  orphan's  support,  is  no  better 
than  the  gentleman  before  alluded  to,  whose  per- 
version of  the  luxuries  of  taste  flowed  from  the 
impurity  of  his  own  mind. 

Whenever  any  company  is  attempted  to  be 
established  for  purposes  of  public  improvement, 
it  is  always  a  prerequisite  of  success,  that  in  the 
programme,  the  expense  should  be  set  down  at 
one  half,  and  the  profits  and  advantages  at  dou- 
ble— and  this  mode  of  stating  things,  although  it 
varies  from  the  actual  result  only  three  hundred 
per  cent.,  is  sure  to  convince,  and  the  public  will 
eagerly  catcli  at  the  enterprise.  The  reason  of 
this  necessity  is,  that  if  the  truth  were  told  in  the 
first  place,  there  would  be  little  chance  for  man- 
agement in  the  stock,  and  none  whatever  of  its 
being  all  taken  up.  But  by  th'isshreivd  manage- 


A  DIRECTOR  A  WEASLE.  17 

ment,  it  generally  happens  that  an  original  sub 
scriber,  after  having  paid  up  in  full  his  subscrip- 
tion, and  two  or  three  assessments  beyond,  loses 
all  confidence,  and  suffers  all  he  has  paid  to  be 
forfeited  to  the  company,  rather  than  pay  more. 
Thus  the  original  subscribers  generally  lose  all 
their  money  ;  the  stock  is  resold  by  the  company 
to  some  new  comer,  and  the  company,  in  the  end, 
collect  a  million  capital  upon  a  subscription  of 
half  that  amount.  And  whoever  subscribes  to  a 
new  fashioned  bank,  or  a  railroad,  and  does  not 
find  the  directors  awake  to  this  management,  may 
hereafter  say  with  truth  that  he  has  caught  a 
weasle  asleep — there  being  no  other  difference 
whatever  in  the  vermin,  than  is  expressed  by  the 
simple  affixes  bi  and  quadru. 

Such  was  the  character  of  Mr.  Single-Eye,  of 
the  Wall-street  Stock  Company  ;  and  the  num- 
ber of  similar  institutions  which  now  display 
their  gilded  signs  there  by  the  same  means,  can 
only  be  told  by  multiplying  some  of  the  numerical. 

It  so  happened,  however,  that  the  Dutchmen, 
from  their  natural  stupidity  and  ingratitude,  as 
Mr.  Single-eye  averred— but,  as  some  suppose, 
from  some  lurking  doubts  of  his  virtue,  and  a 

3*  ' 


18  COMMITTEE  OF  INVESTIGATION. 

spice  of  his  own  cunning— after  having  paid 
seventy-five  per  cent,  premium  for  their  stock, 
through  the  agency  of  Mr.  Broker — could  not  be 
convinced  of  the  propriety  of  paying  more  in  the 
shape  of  assessments,  notwithstanding  Mr.  Sin- 
gle-Eye, and  his  partners  in  the  directorship,  as- 
sured them  that  all  was  right,  and  that  the  money 
had  all  been  properly  expended. 

A  committee  of  examination  into  the  com- 
pany's affairs  was  therefore  appointed ;  where- 
upon Mr.  Single-Eye,  being  grieved  at  such  in- 
dignity offered  to  his  honor,  took  the  "  book  of 
minutes"  and  walked  off,  leaving  the  Dutchmen 
in  a  state  of  "  confusion  worse  confounded,"  from 
which  they  never  recovered  :  thereby  establish- 
ing a  precedent  for  the  tragedy  lately  enacted  in 
the  Water  Works  Bank,  in  this  city — wherein,  if 
the  directors  of  that  institution  had  consulted  the 
ancient  chronicles,  they  would  never  have  tried 
to  cover  their  own  delinquency,  by  a  contempti- 
ble persecution  of  their  late  venerable  cashier. 

The  committee  of  examination,  without  wait- 
ing to  come  to  their  senses,  adjourned  "  sine  die." 
The  city  wall  had  been  broken  down,  and  its 
materials  were  all  scattered  about  in  delightful 


HONORABLE  END  OF  SINGLE-EYE.  19 


confusion.  A  complete  inroad  had  been  made  on 
the  hitherto  peaceful  and  happy  homes  of  the 
Dutchmen.  They  had  lost  all  the  money  in- 
vested in  the  company,  with  the  melancholy  sat- 
isfaction that  it  would  cost  them  as  much  more 
to  clear  away  the  rubbish  ;  and  the  street  was 
left  to  the  slow  progress  of  time,  to  assume  its  pre- 
sent magnificent  appearance. 

It  is  remarkable,  that  such  fatal  results  to  the 
first  experiment,  should  not  have  proved  a  death 
blow  to  all  similar  enterprises  in  future.  But  the 
^Dutchmen  overcame  their  misfortunes  by  pa- 
tience and  industry.  The  memory  of  their 
wrongs  was  all  washed  away  by  the  soothing 
lethe  of  time,  and  their  follies  were  all  buried  in 
the  deep  dark  valley  of  the  land  of  forgetfulness. 
Mr.  SingTe-Eye,  and  Mr.  Broker,  ever  afterwards 
fared  sumptuously  every  day.  They  lived  long 
and  died  lamented  ;  and  the  tablet  to  their  mem- 
ory, lately  removed  from  the  Garden-street  church 
yard,  was  inscribed  with  this  motto  :  u  Money  is 
good,  fame  is  good,  but  to  know  how  to  improve 
the  follies  of  others  is  better  than  either."  And 
their  descendants,  learning  wisdom  from  this  law, 
have  ever  since  continued  to  follow  their  example, 


20 


/ 

THE  MORRISON  KENNEL. 


And  now,  my  dear  readers,  /having  initiated 
you  into  the  origin  of  stock  companies  and  bro- 
kers, as  well  as  the  phrase  and  practice  of  Wall- 
street,  in  my  next  chapter  I  will  give  you  the 
history  of  the  "  Morrison  Kennel" — a  company 
that  has  exhibited  so  many  of  the  phases  of  hu- 
man nature,  that  some  have  said  that  "  old 
Nick"  must  have  had  a  hand  in  it.  If  you  expect 
that  the  dogs  of  this  Kennel  will  prove  to  be 
hounds,  I  will  tell  you  beforehand,  that  they  are 
the  veriest  puppies  in  cowardice,  treachery,  and 
meanness,  while  they  are  perfect  wolves  in 
voracity  ;  as  will  be  proved  by  the  perfectly  de- 
nuded bones  of  the  dead  but  stall-fed  ass,  which 
they  have  just  forsaken. 

If  any  one  is  curious  to  know  from  whence  I 
got  all  this  information,  I  will  tell  him.  I  re- 
ceived it  from  a  venerable  chronicler  of  the  age, 
who  has  the  old  manuscript  in  his  possession, 
and  who  now  visits  Wall-street  daily  to  mark 
the  passing  events.  He  has  agreed  to  meet  me 
there  every  day  for  a  week,  where  he  wMl  reveal  to 
me  the  history  aforesaid,  and  such  other  matters 
as  his  experience  and  observation  may  suggest. 


CHAPTER  II. 


THE   HISTORY  OF    THE   MORRISON  KENNEL  

NICHOLAS  THE  1ST  A  STOCK  SPECULATION, 

&C. 

It  is  a  pleasure  which  comes  gratefully  home 
to  the  heart,  when  contemplating  the  picture  of 
human  life,  in  whatever  grade  of  society  or  con- 
dition we  view  it,  amongst  the  multitude  that  flit 
by  us,  occasionally  to  see  a  being  that  stands  out 
in  bold  and  bright  relief  to  its  dark  shades. 

On  the  second  day  of  my  visit  to  Wall-street, 
while  sitting  with  my  venerable  friend,  the  old 
gentleman,  pointing  to  the  street  asked,  "  do  you 
see  that  man." — "  Yes,"  I  answered,  ff  and  I 
know  him;  he  is  a  man  of  honor,  such  as 
honor  should  be  considered, — one  of  nature's  no- 
blemen ;  his  word  is  as  good  as  his  bond,  and  his 
friendship  is  better  than  either.  He  pays  his  debts 
because  he  promises,  lends  to  oblige  his  neighbor, 


22       ONE  HONEST  MAN  IN  WALL-STREET. 

and  gives  to  benefit  the  receiver — he  tells  the 
truth  because  it  is  right,  and  cheats  nobody  be- 
cause it  would  be  wrong.  He  has  gradually 
risen  in  wealth  and  credit,  has  the  confidence  of 
every  body,  and  amidst  all  the  slime  and  filth 
that  surround  him,  his  character  stands  untouch- 
ed and  unsullied  by  its  poison." 

He  may  be  seen  every  day,  at  half  past  ten, 
going  to  the  stock  exchange,  with  a  book  under 
his  arm  ;  and  may  be  known  by  the  breadth  of 
his  foot,  the  swing  of  his  legs,  and  the  weight  of 
his  bottom.  He  will  occasionally  appear  in  the 
course  of  this  history,  under  the  name'  of  Mr. 

4*  *V  ■ 

Bottomly,  and  I  hope  his  conduct  will  vindicate 
my  description  of  his  character. 

The  old  gentleman  heard  my  remarks  with 
apparent  consent  and  pleasure,  which  were  in- 
dicate by  a  smile  of  satisfaction  peculiar  "to 
himself ;  but  my  silence  was  immediately  com- 
manded by  a  significant  nod,  with  a  gesture  of 
the  hand,  as  much  as  to  say  11  there  are  some 
things  however  in  Wall-street,  which  I  know 
better  than  you  do,"  and  he  then  proceeded, 
agreeably  Jo  promise,  to  relate  the  history  of  the 
Morrison  Kennel, 


THE  VALUE  OF  A  NAME. 


23 


The  garrulity  peculiar  to  men  of  his  age,  must 
excuse  the  frequent  introduction  of  remarks  for- 
eign to  the  narrative ;  and  when  I  tell  my  readers, 
that  my  friend  is  a  man  of  deep  reflection  and 
high  toned  moral  sentiment,  as  well  as  acute  ob- 
servation, they  will  not  be  surprised  at  his  oc- 
casional illustration  of  fact  by  reference  to  prin- 
ciple. 

"The  practice  of  the  aborigines  of  this  coun- 
try," said  he,  "  of  giving  names  to  men  and 
things,  indicative  of  their  qualities  and  exploits, 
is  well  considered  savage.  Since  the  day  when 
the  poet  first  propounded  the  question  e  what's 
in  a  name?'  mere  moralists  have  been  at  fault. 
But  modern  practical  skill  has  discovered  that 
there  is  much  ;  and  it  was  left  for  the  originators 
of  the  Morrison  Kennel,  to  find  out  the  best  use 
that  could  be  made  of  it,  viz :  that  it  may  be 
made  to  cover  one  purpose  under  color  of  an- 
other— may  gain  credit  for  what  it  is  not,  and 
shield  from  detection  what  it  really  is,  or  may  gull 
a  State  with  the  promise  of  improvement,  and 
cheat  the  people  of  their  money  for  their  credu- 
lity. In  short,  the  advantages  to  a  stock  com- 
pany of  a  judicious  choice  of  a  name,  are  incal- 


24        WHY  TKIS  WAS  CALLED  KENNEL. 

culable  ;  not  the  least  of  which  arises  from  pro- 
perly compounding  it,  so  as  to  mean  more  things 
than  one,  as  the  Morrison  Kennel  and  Banking 
Company.  One  peculiar  advantage  of  this  last 
is,  that  as  the  projectors  are  not  always  certain 
what  they  will  do,  but  intend  to  be  governed  by 
their  success,  they  are  thereby  enabled  to  shift 
their  course  to  suit  the  breeze. 

"This  company  would  probably  never  have  at- 
tained the  soubriquet  of  Kennel,  a  mere  play 
upon  the  original  sound,  but  for  the  remarkable 
financial  talents  of  Nicholas  the  1st,  profanely 
called  old  Nick,  in  the  first  place,  and  its  employ- 
ment afterwards  to  help  to  hold  up  the  sides  of 
the  great  bull  dog  of  Pennsylvania,  ycleped  the 
U.  S.  Bank,  who  had  grown  so  weak  from  dis- 
ease, that  it  was  feared,  without  such  aid,  his  at- 
tempt to  bark,  would  prove  a  concussion  of  air 
from  the  wrong  orifice.  In  other  words  it  was 
feared,  that  without  collateral  support,  the  first 
resumption  would  not  last  as  long  as  the  second 
did. 

"The circumstances  which  called  into  activity 
the  financial  talents  of  Nicholas,  deserve  a  par- 
ticular notice,  as  they  have  an  important  bear- 


MR.  FRIENDLY  AND  HIS  APPETITE.  25 


ing  on  this  history.  And  for  that  purpose,  I  must 
introduce  to  you  a  gentleman  well  known  in 
Wall-street;  of  amiable  disposition,  gentlemanly 
deportment  and  honorable  connections.  His  per- 
son may  be  known  from  his  resemblance  to  king 
Saul,  being  taller,  by  the  head,  than  any  of  his 
tribe  of  brokers,  and,  as  he  bears  the  appellative 
of  an  immortalized  Friend,  and  the  signification 
will  be  descriptive  of  his  character,  I  will  call 
him  Mr.  Friendly. 

"  The  only  thing  remarkable  about  this  gentle- 
man is,  his  extraordinary  appetite  ;  from  which, 
taken  with  his  slender  proportions,  it  has  been 
inferred  by  some,  that,  lika  the  bird  most  avoided 
by  sportsmen,  his  alimentary  canal  consists  only 
of  a  straight  passage  ;  for  he  has  been  known  to 
gorge  and  digest  more  stocks  in  one  day,  than 
the  weight  or  bulk  of  his  whole  body  in  the 
certificates. 

"  With  this  introduction  of  a  part  of  the  *  dra- 
matis personae/ — having  already  described,  with 
some  particularity,  the  motive  for,  and  the  man- 
ner of,  getting  up  stock  companies,  with  such 
parts  of  their  general  management  as  can  be  in- 
teresting to  the  public — I  will  commence  with 


26  friendly's  caution. 

the  Morrison  Kennel,  at  that  point  when  the 
causes  for  the  activity  before  alluded  to  com- 
menced, viz:  precisely  at  that  time,  when  the  di- 
rectors had  expended  the  whole  amount  of  capi- 
tal subscribed,  together  with  a  loan  of  seven 
hundred  thousand  dollars  obtained  in  Holland, 
in  digging  a  ditch  through  the  State  of  New 
Jersey,  which  served  little  other  purpose  than  to 
drown  the  Jersey  farmers  pigs — without  any  one 
of  the  said  directors  having  cleared  more  than 
fifty  thousand  dollars  out  of  the  company,  by 
means  of  contracts  or  otherwise — when  their 
credit  was  exhausted,  the  stock  reduced  in  mar- 
ket to  one  fifth  its  original  cost,  and  the  directors 
ready,  on  the  first  symptom  of  alarm,  to  take  to 
their  heels  for  safety.  Then,  fortunately  for 
them,  Mr.  Friendly,  desirous  of  improving  his 
fortune,  which  at  this  time  he  found  to  be  in 
rather  a  waning  condition,  formed  a  scheme  of 
speculation  in  the  stock,  commensurate  with  the 
vastness  of  his  own  desires  ;  and,  with  this  view, 
he  began  with  the  caution  and  finesse  of  one 
who  has  a  game  to  play.  He  first  ascertained 
that  some  of  the  directors  were  still  in  possession 
of  a  considerable  amount  of  the  stock  ;  whom  he 
could,  very  probably,  draw  to  his  own  interest 


CALLS  ON  BOTTOMLY. 


27 


by  endeavoring  to  aid  them ;  and  he  then  pro- 
ceeded to  the  office  of  Mr.  Bottomly. 

"Good  morning,  John,"  said  he,  "how  are 
you  T} 

"Pretty  well  Dan,  how  are  you  ?" 
"  Hard  up." 

"Hard  up,"  eh! — "No  cornering,  I  hope" — 
"  No," — dull  times,  no  movements,  things  are 
paralysed,  very  much." 

Mr.  Friendly  wished,  and  was  therefore 
pleased,  to  find  his  neighbor  alone.  So  he  sat 
down  without  ceremony.  And  after  a  variety 
of  common  place  remarks,  he  at  length  arrived  at 
the  point  where  he  should  unburthen  himself  of 
his  subject.  His  object  was  to  enlist  Mr.  Bot- 
tomly in  his  proposed  speculation,  and  thereby 
secure  his  means,  his  influence,  and  his  interest 
in  its  favor. 

"John,"  said  he,  "the  Morrison  stock  is  very 
low,  what  do  you  think  of  it  ?" 

"  That  it  sells  for  more  than  it  is  worth." 

"  That  may  be,  but  a  thing  is  worth  what  it 
will  bring." 

"  The  seller  always  thinks  so,  but  the  buyer 
sometimes  finds  that  he  has  paid  too  dear  for  the 
whistle." 


28  TWO  WISE  HEADS  TOGETHER. 

"What  would  you  think,  John,  to  see  the 
Morrison  at  75." 

"  I  should  think  very  strange." 

"Stranger  things  have  happened  though,  John. 
I  have  a  mind  to  move  in  the  Morrison,  what 
say  you  to  join  me  ?" 

"  What  do  you  propose  ?" 

"  Why,  you  have  the  means, — the  stock  may 
be  had  at  twenty,  and  a  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars would  control  the  whole  of  it.  It  must  be 
done  quietly;  and  then  by  contracting  on  time 
we  should  have  the  power  to  deliver  without 
loss  when  we  sold  ;  and  by  making  three  con- 
tracts to  receive  to  one  to  deliver,  we  can  make 
them  pay  whatever  difference  we  choose." 

"  That  would  be  too  much  power  to  get  in 
our  hands,  Dan,  would  it  not?" 

"  True,  it  would  not  answer  to  trust  every 
man  with  so  much  ;  but  in  your  hands  and 
mine,  I  think  we  would  not  abuse  it." 

"What  amount  of  exaction  do  you  think 
would  be  an  abuse  of  such  power?" 

"Why,  it  would  be  wrong  to  take  more  than 
two  hundred  per  cent,  profit,  unless  we  got  hold 
of  some  one  who  could  well  afford  it." 


PLAN  CHANGED. 


29 


"But  that  would  be  using  force  to  appropriate 
other  people's  money  to  our  own  use.  I  think  it 
would  not  be  justifiable." 

Mr.  Friendly,  though  not  devoid  of  sound 
sense  and  a  good  judgment,  usually  suffered  his 
eagerness  for  speculation  to  blind  his  mind  to 
every  probable  result  but  the  glitter  of  gain. 
He  had  never  looked  on  the  subject  in  this  light 
before.  He  intended  nothing  but  a  "  fair  busi- 
ness transaction,"  and  was  desirous  that  his 
friend  Bottomly  should  share  in  its  success. 
His  mind  revolted  at  doing  a  positive  wrong;  he 
therefore  abandoned  his  plan,  but  adopted  an- 
other on  the  instant,  which  though  less  culpable 
on  his  part,  was  in  the  end  productive  of  an 
equal  degree  of  evil.  Always  quick  and  decided 
in  his  actions,  he  said  "well  John,  you  are  al- 
ways right-minded,  though  you  are  sometimes 
wrong  headed,  we  will  say  no  more  of  this  plan 
for  the  present ;  but  I  think  well  of  a  speculation, 
and  therefore  you  shall  buy  me  five  hundred 
shares  to  day  at  "  the  board,"  I  will  send  you 
in  a  check  for  "ten  up,"  and  the  rest  we  will  ar- 
range to-morrow." 

Having  decided  upon  his  plan  of  aetion,  Mr, 

4* 


30  THE  BANK  PARLOR. 

Friendly  then  immediately,  sought  the  directors 
who  held  stock.  Fortunately  he  found  them  all 
in  the  bank  parlour.  They  had  just  been  talk- 
ing over  the  affairs  of  the  company,  I  will  not 
say  that  they  had  been  discussing  its  affairs,  for 
their  conversation  was  like  any  thing  else  but  a 
discussion,  and  consisted  of  sundry  expletives 
directed  principally  against  their  predecessors  in 
office.  And  here  let  it  be  remembered,  that  those 
gentlemen,  whose  ambition  had  led  them  to  de- 
sire such  a  post  of  honor,  were  but  newly  install- 
ed in  their  places,  And,  having  purchased  stock 
to  procure  their  election,  with  knowing  but  very 
little  about  the  real  state  of  the  company's  affairs, 
they  were  now  unable  to  get  rid  of  it,  and  were 
lamenting  their  folly  and  cursing  the  authors  of 
it.  For  be  it  known,  that  their  ambition  and  vani- 
ty had  been  stimulated  by  their  predecessors  be- 
fore the  election,  to  induce  those  gentlemen  to 
seek  a  post  which  they  wished  to  abandon  them- 
selves, knowing  that  sooner  or  later  it  would 
disgrace  them. 

Mr.  Friendly  disclosed  his  errand  at  once,  and 
was  well  received. 

Hesaid  he  was  apprised  of  a  speculation  going 


EAVESDROPPERS  31 

on  ill  the  stock  of  the  Morrison  ;  he  intended  to 
embark  in  it — wished  them  to  hold  back  their 
stock,  and  aid  his  views  in  effecting  a  rise,  and  he 
would  aid  them  in  disposing  of  theirs  at  the  right 
time.  He  did  not  tell  them  that  he  was  the  sole 
author  of  the  speculation  ;  he  modestly  forebore 
that,  under  the  plea  that  he  did  not  feel  at  liberty 
to  tell  all  that  he  knew.  But  the  directors  were 
almost  immediately  confirmed  in  their  good  opin- 
ion of  his  knowledge  and  sagacity,  as  well  as  of 
his  intention  to  do  them  a  service,  by  hearing  of 
the  large  purchases  of  Mr.  Bottomly,  at  a  consid- 
erable advance  on  the  previous  market  value. 

It  is  curious,  as  well  as  amusing,  to  see  how 
many  and  how  slight  causes  sometimes  tend  to 
aid  or  to  frustrate  a  speculator  in  his  designs. 

There  is  a  set  of  proscribed  men  in  Wall  street, 
who  were  once  brokers,  professionally,  and  are 
now  broken  in  reputation,  credit  and  finances — 
having  no  means  but  what  they  have  kept  from 
their  creditors,  and — being  expelled  from  the  ex- 
change board  for  defalcation  or  bad  conduct — 
they  still  linger  round  their  old  haunts,  and  carry 
on  a  system  of  gambling  in  what  are  termed  fancy 
stocks,  through  which  they  contrive  occasionally 


32 


EAVESDROPPERS. 


to  entrap  and  empty  the  purse  of  some  new- 
comer, or  filch  each  other  of  their  ill  retained 
means,  until  each  in  his  turn  gets  placed  on  the 
"  black  list,"  which  is  the  final  seal  of  reproba- 
tion, and  in  Wall-street  signifies — "  that  whoever 
deals  with  that  man,  shall  himself  not  be  dealt 
with  by  any  one." 

These  gentry  may  be  seen,  daily,  in  squads  of 
three,  four,  and  five,  standing  on  the  side  walks, 
or  on  the  steps  of  the  large  offices,  talking  vocife- 
rously, and  making  such  bids  and  offers  in  the 
funds,  as  that  one  not  knowing  better,  would  sup- 
pose that  each  held  the  finances  of  the  country 
in  his  palm. 

One  of  them,  whom  I  will  call  Mr.  Eavesdrop- 
per, had  his  ear  timidly  placed  at  the  key  hole  of 
the  Stock  Exchange,  and  heard  Mr.  Bottomly's 
bids  for  Morrison,  which  instantly  infused  such 
courage  into  his  mind,  and  activity  into  his  limbs, 
that  he  went  out,  and  before  the  transactions  of 
the  board  were  publicly  known,  he  had  privately 
contracted  for  the  delivery  of  a  large  number  of 
shares  ;  and  then,  to  aid  his  purpose  in  effecting 
a  further  rise,  gave  out  that  he  was  in  confidence 
with  John  Jacob  Astor,  or  some  one  no  less  pow- 


MR.  SPRIGGINS. 


33 


erful,  who  had  determined  to  buy  up  the  whole 
company. 

As  soon  as  Mr.  Friendly  had  returned  to  his 
office  from  the  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Brokers, 
on  the  day  I  am  speaking  of,  and,  as  is  common, 
had  laid  open  on  his  outer  desk,  for  public  inspec- 
tion, the  record  of  the  transactions  which  had 
there  taken  place — in  which  he  had  carefully 
noted  all  those  in  the  stock  of  the  Morrison — he 
walked  out  into  the  street,  where  he  encountered 
Mr.  Spriggins,  who,  contrary  to  his  wont,  for 
some  cause,  had  not  been  present  at  the  board 
that  morning. 

Mr.  Spriggins  is  one  of  those  gentlemen,  whose 
conceit  of  himself  supplies  the  place  of  educa- 
tion, manners,  and  intellect,  and  he  accosted  Mr, 
Friendly  as  follows : 

"Dan,  what  does  all  this  speculation  in  the 
Morrison  mean  ?" 

Mr.  Friendly,  whose  polite  manners  encour- 
aged the  freedom  of  such  men  as  his  friend  Bot- 
tomly,  held  in  contempt  the  rudeness  of  impu- 
dence, and,  instead  of  answering  Spriggins,  turn- 
ed on  his  heel  without  noticing  him. 

Spriggins,  who  could  never  imagine  the  exist- 


34 


THE  FEVER  UP. 


ence  of  such  a  feeling  towards  a  gentleman  like 
himself,  attributed  this  treatment  entirely  to  an- 
other motive  ;  and  knowing  Mr.  Friendly's  specu- 
lative character,  he  at  once  imagined  that  Friend- 
ly had  a  secret  that  he  wished  to  keep,  and  im- 
prove for  his  own  benefit,  and  he  immediately 
resolved  in  his  own  mind  to  outwit  him.  Upon 
this  impulse  he  hurried  away  to  purchase  all  the 
Morrison  stock  he  could  get  hold  of — which  he 
did  at  a  large  advance  of  price  over  the  purchases 
of  Mr.  Bottomly  ;  and  when  he  had  done  so,  ex- 
ultingly  told  Mr.  Friendly  that  he  was  "  not  to 
be  come  over."  "  But  never  mind,"  said  he5  "  you 
can  keep  your  secret  now,  Dan  ;  but  if  you  are 
so  disposed,  as  you  know  what  is  going  on,  we 
will  operate  together." 

Mr.  Friendly  was  not  disposed  to  embrace  this 
offer,  liberal  as  it  was,  and  maintained  such  a  re- 
serve as  excited  still  further  the  cupidity  of 
Spriggins.  Meantime,  having  heard  of  the  ope- 
rations of  Eavesdropper,  Mr.  Friendly  perceived 
that  he  had  fairly  put  the  match  to  a  train  that, 
if  properly  fed,  would  lead  to  an  explosion.  But 
he  resolved  that  before  it  should  happen,  he 
would  take  good  care  of  himself. 


LOAFEliS.  35 

There  is  another  set  of  men  in  Wall-street, 
which  demand  my  description.  They  have  nei- 
ther trade  nor  profession  of  any  kind,  and  if  they 
ever  had  any,  they  have  abandoned  it.  Some  of 
them  are  of  that  class  called  Gentlemen,  who  have 
married  fortunes  and  squandered  them — some 
are  broken  merchants — some  disgraced  politi- 
cians— defunct  post  masters,  &c.  &c, — and  all 
of  them  are  Loafers.  They  have  neither  wit 
enough  to  contrive,  nor  credit  enough  to  carry 
out,  a  speculation  :  but  when  one  has  begun,  like 
that  I  am  now  describing,  they  may  be  seen 
flocking  in  and  out  of  the  brokers'  offices — exam- 
ining the  stock  books — talking  wisely  of  the  na- 
tion's affairs — each  one  pretending  to  know  more 
of  finance  than  even  Mr.  Woodbury  himself ; 
and  their  exuberance  of  knowledge  is  almost  as 
luminously  exhibited.  Like  flies  round  a  honey 
pot,  each  one  is  anxious  for  a  sip,  and  according 
to  his  slender  means,  pledges  a  hundred  dol- 
lars, more  or  less,  and  orders  his  broker  to  buy 
as  many  shares  as  he  will  upon  this  security. 
They  thus  materially  aid  the  great  speculators  ; 
but  the  result  to  themselves  generally  is,  that 
their  families  or  friends  suffer  precisely  the 


36 


DEEP  IN  FOR  IT. 


amount  they  have  risked — and  so  it  was  in  this 
instance. 

Mr.  Friendly  continued  to  purchase  largely  of 
the  Morrison  stock,  which  increased  the  excite- 
ment, and  continually  advanced  the  price  ;  and 
Mr.  Spriggins,  nettled  by  Friendly's  reserve  to- 
wards him,  continued  to  be  a  large  purchaser  * 
also,  and  induced  several  of  his  friends  to  join 
him. 

It  ought  to  be  observed  here,  that  these  pur- 
chases were  generally  made  "on  time  :"  that  is,  the 
stock  was  agreed  to  be  delivered  at  a  future  day. 
And  it  so  happened  that  when  Spriggins  was  the 
buyer,  Mr.  Friendly  was  generally  the  seller, 
through  some  other  persons,  as  his  agents ;  and 
he  had  taken  care  so  to  provide  himself  with 
stock,  that  he  could  meet  his  contracts  on  time — 
not  only  without  the  danger  of  loss,  but  with  a 
certain  profit. 

So  long  as  the  stock  maintained  the  very  high 
price  to  which  it  had  now  advanced,  all  was  well ; 
but  the  time  must  come,  when  it  would  not,  and 
then,  there  was  danger  that  Spriggins,  and  his 
compatriots  in  the  speculation,  would  not  be  able 
to  fulfill  their  engagements.  Mr.  Friendly,  there- 


HOW  SOME  PEOPLE  NEGOTIATE  LOANS.  37 

fore,  as  a  stimulant  to  the  action  of  Spriggins, 
and  to  prepare  for  the  denouement,  hinted  to  him 
that,  as  the  stock  had  now  so  much  increased  in 
value,  probably  Nicholas  the  1st  would  loan  mo- 
ney liberally  upon  it ;  and,  as  the  stock  must  rise 
still  more,  such  an  accommodation  would  be  very 
desirable,  to  enable  one  to  hold  it.  He  dropped 
this  hint  in  such  a  way,  as  led  Spriggins  to  be- 
lieve that  he  intended  to  make  the  application 
for  himself.  He  had  really,  however,  no  inten- 
tion of  asking  such  a  favor,  for  such  a  purpose, 
but  he  knew  well  what  the  effect  of  such  a  sug- 
gestion would  be  with  Spriggins,  and — as  he  ex- 
pected— the  dapper  gentleman  immediately  start- 
ed, post  haste,  for  Philadelphia,  and  succeeded  in 
obtaining  from  Nicholas,  the  promise  of  a  loan  of 
one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars,  on  stock 
of  the  Morrison,  which,  six  weeks  before,  was 
not  worth,  in  the  market,  one-fourth  of  that 
amount :  that  is,  provided  Mr.  Spriggins  would 
negotiate  half  a  million  of  dollars  of  the  bonds  of 
the  U.  S.  B.,  payable  in  twelve  months  from  date ; 
by  which  means,  Nicholas  cunningly  foresaw, 
that,  instead  of  lending  Spriggins,  he  should  him- 
self be  the  borrower  of  no  less  a  sum  than  there 

5 


38      friendly's  plan  consummated. 

hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars.  But  those 
were  palmy  days  of  credit :  the  bonds  were  all 
negotiated  with  ease,  and  the  Morrison  stock 
transferred  to  Nicholas,  as  security  for  the  loan, 
as  fast  as  the  greedy  purchases  of  Mr.  Spriggins 
could  command  the  large  amount  necessary. 

Mr.  Friendly  now  saw  all  his  hopes  about  to 
be  realized.    By  obtaining  the  control  of  a  very 
large  amount  of  the  stock  at  20  to  25  per  cent, 
on  the  par,  and  stimulating  the  cupidity  and  self 
conceit  of  Spriggins,  he  constantly  went  on  buy- 
ing ten  shares  at  an  increased  price,  and  always 
selling,  through  some  one  else,  twenty  shares  to 
every  ten  that  he  bought,  until  he  succeeded  in 
throwing  the  wholestockupon  Spriggins,  and  his 
associates,  who,  as  we  have  seen,  were  supported 
by  Nicholas,  in  their  mad  speculation.    And,  in 
less  than  four  months  from  his  first  purchase, 
Mr.  Friendly  retired,  with  a  clear  profit  of  one 
hundred  thousand  dollars,  and  the  eternal  grati- 
tude of  the  directors  of  the  Morrison,  whom  he 
had  assisted  and  relieved. 

The  directors  of  the  Morrison  rubbed  their 
hands  with  glee,  and  treated  Mr.  Friendly  with 
the  greatest  respect,  when  they  found  that  they 


THE  DIRECTORS  STUCK  FAST.  39 

had  got  rid  of  all  their  stock,  not  only  without 
loss,  but  at  an  enormous  profit.  But  then  came 
the  affairs  of  the  company,  which  were  not  a 
whit  better  now,  than  when  the  stock  was  de- 
pressed. In  fact,  they  were  every  day  growing 
worse — for  the  interest  on  their  enormous  loans, 
was  now  becoming  due,  and  they  had  nothing  to 
pay  it  with. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  board  of  directors,  about 
the  time  we  are  speaking  of,  for  purposes  of  busi- 
ness, they  all  sat  in  silence,  for  some  minutes, 
looking  at  each  other — each  one  wishing  that  his 
neighbor  might  propose  some  remedy — and  their 
hearts  sank  within  them,  as  each  one  succes- 
sively uttered  a  desponding  sigh  at  the  poverty 
of  his  invention,  or — what  was  still  worse  to  get 
over — the  poverty  of  their  finances.  At  length, 
Mr.  Faintheart  proposed  that  they  should  all  re- 
sign, and  let  the  affairs  of  the  company  take  care 
of  themselves.  This  course — although  so  suc- 
cessfully practised  some  time  afterwards  by  their 
successors  in  office— did  not  suit  the  taste  of  Mr. 
Hold-on ;  who  said  that  "  the  public  mind  was 
not  now  prepared  for  such  a  movement.  A  few 
years  more,  and  the  people  will  be  more  enlight- 


40      '  A  WISE  SUGGESTION — ITS  RESULT. 

ened,  and  will  not  expect  directors  to  retain  their 
seats  when  they  have  nothing  to  gain  by  doing 
so.  But,  if  we  desert  them  now,  the  thing  will 
be  looked  into  ;  we  shall  be  accused  of  all  the 
roguery  that  others  before  us  have  done — we 
shall  be  hunted  like  rats.  My  motto,  therefore, 
is, 1  don't  give  up  the  ship  f  and,  as  none  of  you 
propose  a  remedy,  I  suggest  that,  as  Nicholas 
now  holds  a  large  amount  of  the  stock,  perhaps 
he  will  loan  us  a  couple  of  hundred  thousands, 
especially,  if  he  is  made  to  believe  that  it  is  want- 
ed to  finish  our  works  of  improvement,  and  that 
when  they  are  finished  it  will  improve  the  value 
of  his  stock  fifty  per  cent." 

The  proposal  was  hailed  with  delight,  and  Mr. 
Hold-on  was  deputed  to  manage  the  negotiation, 
which  he  did  with  the  same  success,  in  the  same 
manner,  and  on  the  same  conditions,  as  did  Mr* 
Spriggins. 

This  cunning  device  of  Nicholas,  always  to  be 
the  borrower,  when  he  appeared  to  lend,  is  alto- 
gether a  modern  invention,  and  was  very  suc- 
cessfully practised,  a  few  years  since,  in  an  at- 
tempt to  relieve  the  merchants  of  New- York,  and 
which,  some  have  wickedly  said,  was  used  to  en- 


OLD  NICK?S  SHREWDNESS. 


41 


able  certain  gentlemen  to  collect  their  private 
debts,  and  finally  went  to  relieve  Nicholas  of  his 
money,  by  throwing  the  same  debts  upon  him. 
Bo  that  as  it  may,  it  is  universally  admitted  that 
Nicholas  was  the  first  inventor  of  a  bank,  whose 
business  was  to  borrow,  instead  of  lending, 
money. 

By  these  master  strokes  of  policy,  Nicholas 
came  into  possession  of  a  claim  of  two  hundred 
thousand  dollars  against  the  Morrison,  and  held 
an  equal  amount  of  their  stock,  both  which  in 
six  months  afterwards  he  found  to  be  not  worth 
a  farthing.  To  these  circumstances  it  was 
owing,  that,  through  his  influence,  the  Morrison 
Kennel  was  afterwards  revived  with  great  splen- 
dor, and  scenes  were  enacted,  which,  though 
they  have  caused  many  a  tear  of  grief  to  flow, 
will,  I  hope,  not  fail  to  excite  your  laughter  by 
their  relation. 

My  venerable  friend  here  excused  himself  on 
account  of  fatigue,  but  with  the  assurance  that, 
at  our  next  meeting,  he  would  introduce  me  to 
some  new  and  original  characters,  and  also  tell 
me  about  the  negotiation  of  a  great  state  loan- 
how  the  directors  of  the  Morrison  helped  to 

5* 


42  HOW  THE  OPERATORS  CAME  OUT. 

nurse  the  great  "  bull  dog"  of  Pennsylvania  in 
his  sickness,  and  how  they  all  ran  away,  when 
they  found  he  was  likely  to  die,  together  with 
some  account  of  his  disease,  and  his  last  mor 
ments. 

If  any  one  is  curious  to  know  what  became  of 
Messrs.  Friendly,  Spriggins,  and  Eavesdropper, 
after  their  figure  in  the  Speculation,  I  will  take 
this  opportunity  to  tell  them,  that  what  has  here 
been  said  is  but  a  small  part  of  the  fame  to  which 
they  are  entitled  ;  but  it  is  my  business  only  to 
show  the  results  of  such  things  as  I  have  related. 

Mr.  Friendly,  as  all  good  men  do,  spent  his 
money  liberally  and  charitably.  To  a  large  cir- 
cle, his  house  was  the  centre  of  politeness,  ele- 
gance, and  hospitality  ;  but  his  insatiable  appe- 
tite for  speculation  ruined  him  at  last,  as  it  does 
all  others  ;  at  least,  he  is  so  far  ruined,  that  until 
another  speculation  shall  turn  out  like  the  Mor. 
rison,  he  will  be  content  to  practice  economy. 
Mr.  Sprig^ins  set  up  his  carriage  on  his  antici- 
pated profits,  and  was  let  down  from  it  before  his 
coachman  had  fairly  mounted  his  livery;  and 
report  says  that  he  has  since  done  the  same 
thing  three  times  over.    Mr.  Eavesdropper  ran 


RESULTS  OF  GAMBLING. 


43 


wild  with  his  first  success,  and,  in  the  end,  only 
arrived  one  stride  nearer  the  "  black  list."  And 
exactly  one'hundred  and  forty  others  were  made 
poorer  than  they  were  before,  by  the  whole 
amount  which  they  put  at  risk. 

If  the  mischiefs  arising  from  this  species  of 
gambling  were  confined  to  those  who  set  that 
kind  of  speculation  on  foot,  or  who  make  it  the 
business  of  their  lives,  there  would  be  nothing  to 
lament.  But  such  is  not  the  fact.  The  whirl- 
wind naturally  sweeps  everything  within  its  in- 
fluence, and  over  which  it  has  power,  to  its  cen- 
tre. Hundreds,  nay  thousands,  allured  by  the 
success  of  a  few,  aie  induced  to  embark  in  the 
rash  adventure.  They  are  unacquainted  with 
the  real  character  or  causes  of  the  fluctuations, 
and  even  if  they  are  not  ignorant,  they  are  liable 
to  be  outwitted  by  some  of  the  hundred  minds 
that  are  continually  plotting  against  them.  Here 
is  the  fruitful  source  of  all  those  defalcations  of 
public  officers — the  purloining  of  money  by  of- 
ficers, and  clerks  of  institutions  which  have  so 
much  multiplied  of  late — inflicting  misery  on 
the  families,  and  disgrace  on  the  names  of  many 
a  once  honorable  man.    The  business  is  showy 


44   GOOD  LESSONS  TO   THOSE  WHO  WILL  HEAR. 

and  fascinating,  its  temptations  subtle  and  allur- 
ing. Young  and  enterprising  merchants  embark 
in  it,  and  find  that  they  have  lost  their  money 
and  their  credit,  when  it  is  too  late  to  repent. 
The  hard  working  mechanic  embarks  a  few 
hundred  dollars,  and  when  he  finds  himself  in 
debt  and  no  means  of  paying,  sees  that  he  has 
been  outwitted,  and  that,  if  others  have  made 
money,  he  has  lost  it.  In  fact  that  it  is  he,  and 
others  like  him,  who  have  assisted  the  successful 
to  pocket  his  profits.  Women* yield  up  the  sav- 
ings of  years  to  be  invested  in  something,  they 
know  not  what,  and  wail  over  their  folly  and 
their  credulity,  when  all  their  bright  hopes  have 
faded  into  a  worthless  certificate.  In  fact  it  is 
only  the  loss  sustained  by  such  as  these  that  en- 
ables the  operators,  as  they  are  termed,  to  accu- 
mulate, or  even  to  live  by  their  business ;  foi 
they  could  do  neither  the  one  nor  the  other  with- 
in themselves.  And  it  will  be  found  to  be  a  ne- 
cessary consequence,  that  in  all  such  specu- 
lations as  that  of  which  I  have  endeavored 
to  give  but  too  faithful  a  picture,  if  one  is 
made  rich,  a  hundred  are  made  poor.  In  no 
country  in  the  world,  is  the  hazard  of  stock 


BUBBLES. 


45 


gambling,  so  great  as  in  this,  where  there  is  such 
a  multitude  of  stocks,  based  upon  the  schemes  of 
individuals,  and  affected  by  the  ever  changing 
prosperity  of  our  growing,  yet  comparatively 
unsettled  condition  ;  and  where  the  capitals  are 
often  so  small,  that  it  is  in  the  power  of  two  or 
three  designing  individuals  to  raise  them  above, 
or  depress  them  below,  their  real  value,  as  may 
best  suit  their  plans  or  their  convenience,  thus 
often  destroying  the  sole  "dependence  of  the 
needy  and  helpless. 


CHAPTER  III. 

STATE    STOCKS — HISTORY   OF    THE  MORRISON 

KENNEL      CONTINUED  INTRODUCTION  OF 

NEW  CHARACTERS — THE  U.  S.  BANK,  &C. 

Among  the  many  schemes  of  finance  that  have 
disgraced  our  country,  and  been  fruitful  sources 
of  peculation,  deserving  the  severe  censure  of 
justice,  and  the  ridicule  of  wit,  there  are  none 
more  prominent  than  the  bubble  of  state  stocks. 
Time  was  when  that  name  had  a  signification  of 
value;  but  a  new  era  is  now  upon  us,  the  end  of 


46       HOW  WISE  MEN  HAVE  BEEN  DUPED. 

which,  "  is  not  yet."  The  character  of  our 
western  population  is  one  of  hardy  enterprise, 
and  great  intelligence  in  their  own  particular 
sphere ;  but  by  some  strange  fatuity  they  have 
overrated  their  credit,  and  in  so  doing,  have 
overreached  themselves.  That  confidence  of  a 
western  man  which  induces  him  to  believe  that 
he  can  "  whip  his  weight  in  wild  cats,"  is  no 
vain  boast,  but  the  natural  consequence  of  that 
hardihood,  of  vigor  that  comes  of  their  spirit  of 
enterprise;  and  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at,  that 
the  thrift  of  their  situation  should  inspire  a 
similar  confidence  in  other  matters.  But,  until 
they  can  learn  to  take  better  care  of  their  credit, 
and  intrust  the  management  of  it  to  more  skilful 
and  experienced  hands,  they  will  never  cease  to 
be  cheated  and  dishonored.  The  following  de- 
tail by  my  venerable  and  facetious  friend,  of  a 
negociation  for  the  sale  of  state  bonds,  would  be  ■ 
true  to  life,  if  it  were  not  too  feebly  described,  for 
as  I  write  only  from  recollection  I  find  it  impos- 
sible to  do  justice  to  his  humor. 

"  Before."  said  he,  "  I  proceed  to  the  story  of 
the  state  bonds,  I  must  first  relate  to  you  what 
changes  took  place  in  the  Morrison.    As  soon 


BUTTONING  UP. 


47 


as  the  speculation  detailed  yesterday  had  ceased, 
and  Mr.  Friendly  had  fairly  retired  with  his  pro- 
fits, the  stock  went  down,  down,  down,  and  not 
a  purchaser  for  a  single  share  could  be  found  at 
any  price  ;  and  as  soon  as  the  whole  class  of 
small  speculators  perceived  that  they  had  been 
"  stuck,"  aware  of  the  injury  the  little  credit  they 
possessed  would  sustain,  if  they  were  known  to 
have  met  with  a  loss^  they  all  shut  their  mouths, 
except,  that  each  one  pitied  his  neighbor ;  and 
strange  as  it  may  seem,  not  a  man  could  be 
found  in  Wall-street,  who  confessed  the  owner- 
ship of  a  share  ;  where  three  weeks  before  there 
were  thousands.  This  is  called  "  buttoning  up," 
and  if  any  gentleman  in  a  certain  predicament 
was  ever  surprised  by  a  bevy  of  ladies  suddenly 
turning  the  corner,  he  will  know  something  of 
the  hurry  felt,  and  the  nonchalance  assumed,  on 
this  occasion. 

Six  months  from  the  time  when  Nicholas  made 
the  loans  before  spoken  of,  he  "  found  that  the 
security  was  not  worth  a  farthing."  If  any  one 
is  surprised  that  he  should  have  been  so  impro- 
vident of  safety,  they  only  need  be  told,  that  he 
is  one  of  those  men  whose  expansiveness  of 


48       nick's  talents  and  courtesy. 

mind,  and  splendid  talents  were  at  home  only  in 
great  things.  He  could  grasp  at  millions,  and 
sport  with  them  as  mere  baubles  ;  but  the  dull 
and  dry  detail  of  investigating  trifles,  was  fit  oc- 
cupation only  for  meaner  minds.  And  to  the 
same  splendid  talents  it  was  undoubtedly  owing, 
that  in  passing  into  retirement,  he  was  enabled 
to  discover  so  much  soundness  and  prosperity  in 
the  affairs  of  the  U.  S.  Bank  of  Pennsylvania, 
when  nobody  else  could,  and  that  the  stock-hold- 
ers of  that  institution,  are  so  permanently  fixed 
in  an  investment  of  a  capital  of  35  millions,  that 
they  will  never  get  a  dollar  of  it  back  again. 

Nicholas,  however,  was  a  man  of  courtesy,  and 
when  on  a  visit  to  this  city,  condescended  to 
call  on  the  directors  of  the  Morrison.  The 
money  borrowed  by  "them,  had  been  all  expend- 
ed ;  another  instalment  of  interest  was  becoming 
due,  and  nothing  provided  to  pay  it  with.  He 
met  them  in  the  Bank  parlor,  with  solemn  faces, 
and  like  the  Irishman's  owl,  which  he  feigned  to 
be  a  parrot,  they  spoke  not,  but  were  thinking 
very  hard. 

"  Well  gentlemen,"  said  he,  "  what  is  the  mat 
ter?" 


«1E  D — L  NOT  TO  BE  FEARED.  49 

Mr.  Faintheart,  always  foremost  to  ex- 
press discouragement,  and  always  the  last  to  aid 
in  relief,  immediately  replied.  Why  Mr.  B.  the 
D — 1  is  to  pay,  and  we  have  no  money.  True, 
answered  Nicholas,  you  owe  me  a  good  deal 
of  money,  but  if  that  is  all,  it  can  no  doubt  be 
arranged. 

Mr.  Faintheart  first  blushed,  then  turned  pale, 
rose  from  his  seat,  and  his  knees  smote  together, 
when  he  perceived  that  he  had  unluckily  hit  on 
the  vulgar  cognomen  of  Nicholas.  Regarding 
the  man  with  the  highest  veneration,  and  even 
with  fear,  and  unable  himself  to  comprehend, 
how  so  great  a  mind  could  exist,  without  more 
aid  than  falls  to  the  lot  of  common  mortals, 
he  secretly  believed  the  profane  allusion  to  be  a 
verity,  and,  in  his  fears,  expecting  a  blow  from  the 
forked  tail,  that  would  annihilate  him  at  once, 
he  was  fain  to  esconce  himself  under  the  table. 
But  perceiving  that  none  of  his  comrades  at- 
tempted to  run  away,  and  that  Nicholas  himself 
sat  in  "the  armed  chair,  calm  as  a  summer's 
morning,"  with  a  smile  playing  upon  his  coun- 
tenance, benignant  as  benevolence  herself,  he 

was  re-assured ;  the  purple  came  to  his  nose  again, 

6 


50  EVERY  MAN  HAS  HIS  PRICE* 


and  he  stammered  out,  I  beg  pardon,  I  had  no 
allusion  to — to — you,  sir. 

"Sit  down,  Mr.  Faintheart, " said  Nicholas," 
your  wit  amuses  us". 

Mr.  Faintheart  sat  down,  but  was  unable  suf- 
ficiently to  master  his  disturbed,  and  mortified 
feelings,  to  utter  another  word. 

What  further  took  place  at  this  conference  is 
not  fully  known,  but  it  is  generally  understood 
that,  by  the  advice  and  influence  of  Nicholas,  it 
was  then  and  there  agreed,  that,  to  revive  the  cre- 
dit of  the  Morrison,  it  was  best  to  have  a  new  of- 
ficial organization,  and  to  select  for  that  purpose 
men  of  talent,  shrewdness,  property  and  credit. 
But  as  few  such  could  be  found  who  were  wil- 
ling to  act,  common  scandal  has  affirmed,  that 
resort  was  had  to  the  principle,  that  "every  man 
has  his  price,"  and  that  sums  as  high  as  ten  thou- 
sand dollars  were  paid,  in  more  than  one  instance, 
to  procure  the  requisite  number,  all  of  proper 
standing. 

All  this  took  place  soon  after  the  period  we 
are  speaking  of,  and  if,  by  talent  and  shrewdness, 
is  meant,  the  ability  to  obtain  credit,  when  none 
is  merited,  and  to  know  how  to  appropriate  the 


FIGURES  MAY  BE  MADE  TO  LIE.  51 

avails  to  themselves,  without  incurring  liability, 
with  two  or  three  honorable  exceptions,  the  se- 
lection of  officers  was  a  judicious  one.  All  these, 
however,  were  minor  considerations,  and  when 
Nicholas  saw  his  new  friends  installed,  with  a 
prospect  of  reviving  the  credit  of  the  company, 
and  not  only  recovering  his  debt,  but  obtaining 
a  bolster  also,  to  support  the  weary  head  of  his 
great  Pet,  his  ends  were  nearly  answered.  This 
was  probably  one  of  the  encouragements  which 
led  to  his  famous  letter  of  resignation  ;  and,  since 
the  cotton  speculation  is  now  closed,  and  the 
commissions  all  realised,  we  must  now  leave 
him  to  enjoy  his  taste  for  literature,  botany,  and 
horticulture,  on  the  banks  of  the  Schuylkill. 

A  semi  official  statement  of  the  affairs  of  the 
Morrison  was  now  put  forth.  This  also  is  a 
plan  of  modern  invention,  not  called  for  of  yore  ; 
and  whenever  it  appears  gratuitously,  is  always 
designed  to  support  a  false  credit.  Its  success 
depends  on  such  a  classification,  division,  and 
subdivision  of  the  items,  that  the  figures  will  ex- 
press the  same  things  three  or  four  times  over. 
In  this  instance  it  was  properly  done,  and  ac- 
cordingly, the  stock  and  credit  of  the  company 
were  revived  under  its  influence. 


52 


NEW  CHARACTERS. 


And  now,  said  my  friend,  it  is  time  I  should 
make  you  acquainted  with  the  gentlemen  you 
saw  this  morning.  The  tall,  spare,  white  haired 
gentleman,  with  a  scooping  form,  a  down-cast 
look,  and  a  contriving  countenance,  is  Mr. 
Bold  Eno.  You  saw  that  he  had  an  eye  of  fire  ; 
but  it  is  only  a  spark  struck  from  a  heart  of 
flint,  and  a  conscience  of  steel.  I  have  not  much 
to  say  about  him  now,  but  he  will  figure  by  and 
by.  The  next  is  a  gentleman  of  more  noble 
presence,,  and  less  of  the  look  of  the  d — 1  about 
him.  His  mouth  is  full  of  honied  words,  but  if 
you  believe  them  all,  they  will  very  likely  prove 
"  sweet  to  the  taste  but  bitter  in  the  belly."  His 
name  is  John-of-the-Field,  which  signifies  that 
he  is  a  great  sportsman;  but  his  sports  are 
chiefly  confined  to  shooting  with  the  long  gun. 
It  has  been  said' that  he  could  shoot  round  a  cor- 
ner; but  that  is  a  slander  upon  the  truth,  and 
arose  only  from  his  dexterity,  in  always  provid- 
ing a  corner,  round  which  he  can  escape,  when- 
ever his  favorite  weapon  throws  wide  of  the 
mark.  He  is  a  lover  of  the  arts,  and  his  soul 
melts  at  the  dulcet  sounds  of  music.  His  polite- 
ness, and  hospitality,  can  be  measured  only  by 


A  WESTERN  FINANCIER.  53 

his  love  of  power  ;  and  his  opinion  of  himself  is, 
that  to  make  him  the  "greatest  and  best"  man 
alive,  he  needs  only  to  have  his  own  way.  The 
third  gentleman,  whose  hat  was  a  little  slouched, 
and  his  coat  not  of  the  most  modern  cut,  who 
measured  as  much  space  at  one  stride  of  his  legs, 
as  the  other  gentlemen  measured  at  two,  with  his 
fist  doubled  in  his  glove,  expressive  of  his  deter- 
mination, and  his  wrath,  is  Mr.  Commission- 
er  from  the  state  of  .    In  his  early 

youth,  he  left  the  land  of  his  fathers,  the  land  of 
steady  habits,  where  he  had  learned,  (what  every 
one  learns  there,)  how  to  read  and  spell  correct- 
ly, with  the  rudiments  of  Pike  and  Murray,  and 
fearless  and  alone,  treading  the  western  wilder- 
ness in  search  of  a  more  genial  soil,  he  estab- 
lished himself,  where  now  a  flourishing  city 
spreads  out  her  next  to  queenly  beauty.  Of 
course  he  reapt  golden  fruits  of  his  toil,  and 
opinions  of  his  sagacity;  in  short  he  became, 
not  unworthily,  a  great  man  among  them.  The 
principal  error  of  his  mind,  was,  that  being  born 
in  comparative  poverty,  and  accustomed  to  mat- 
ter of  fact  dealing,  he  regarded  the  stupendous 

bubbles  of  artificial  credit  and  means,  as  all  real, 

6* 


54 


DINING  PRELIMINARY,  &C. 


and  the  men  who  managed  them,  as  all  abounding 
in  riches,  and  as  honest  as  himself.  He  is  now 
here,  to  see  how  far  his  improved  knowledge  of 
finance  may  enable  him  to  correct  his  past  errors 
of  judgment. 

Two  or  three  years  ago,  this  same  gentleman 
came  here,  by  the  way  of  Philadelphia,  being 
there  recommended  to  the  Morrison  Kennel  Com- 
pany, and  others,  to  negotiate  the  sale  of  two  mil- 
lions of  dollars,  in  state  bonds.  On  his  arrival 
here,  he  made  himself  acquainted  with  all  the 
characters  here  introduced,  and  was  "dined"  by 
each  in  turn,  with  a  view  to  sound  him  as  to  his 
wishes  and  expectations. 

The  president  of  the  company  having  been 
authorised  to  open  preliminaries  of  negotiation 
with  the  commissioner,  the  board  of  directors 
was  subsequently  called  together  to  hear  the 
report ;  and,  not  to  oifend  the  dignity  of  any  one, 
who  may  fancy  he  recognises  his  own  charac- 
ter, I  will  abreviate  the  names  of  those  present, 
as  follows,  viz :  The  Prest.  and  Messrs.  J.  G. 
S.  T.  and  W.,  directors  ;  and  when  all  had  taken 
their  seats,  they  proceeded  to  business,  as  follows  : 

Prest.    Gentlemen :  in  conformity  with  your 


DIRECTORS?S  WIT  AND  CHAMPAGNE.  55 


request,  I  have  attended  to  the  duty  imposed  on 
me.  and  my  report  is — that  in  stubbornness,  one 
Hoosier  is  more  than  a  match  for  us  all. 

"  Ha,  ha,  ha !"  all  around  the  board. 

G.  Well,  in  cunning  how  does  he  stand,  Mr* 
President  ? 

Prest.    Simple  as  a  doe. 

T.  Then  he  can't  escape,  G.,  if  we  turn  him 
over  to  you. 

G.  Leave  off  your  jokes,  T. ;  this  is  not  a 
place  for  them.  Mr.  President,  what  says  he  to 
our  proposal  ? 

Prest.  He  likes  it  not ;  he  wants  more  ready 
money  than  we  possess — he  won't  budge. 

S.  But,  if  we  could  get  possession  of  the 
bonds,  I  think  I  could  make  a  private  advance. 

T.  (aside.)  Yes,  no  doubt,  and  a  private  profit, 
too. 

G.  Does  he  object  to  our  credit,  Mr.  Presi- 
dent. 

Prest.  Not  at  all ;  he  has  the  most  perfect 
confidence ;  that  was  cared  for  at  Philadelphia, 
before  he  came  here. 

J.    Can't  we  come  over  him  with  champagne  1 


56      PLANS,  HARD  NAMES,  AND  FLOORING. 

T.  If  we  had  less  sham  here,  I  think  it  would 
be  better. 

J.  But,  it  is  our  only  chance  ;  and,  if  we  do 
not  contrive  to  raise  some  active  means  soon,  we 
shall  never  accomplish  our  designs. 

T.  And,  if  you  are  not  quick  about  it,  John- 
of-the-Field  will  outwit  you  all. 

J.    What  says  Mr.  Bold  Eno  ? 

G.  He  is  throwing  cold  water,  and  I  suspect 
he  is  attacking  our  credit. 

J.  Tell  the  commissioner,  then,  that  we  will 
mortgage  the  Kennel  to  him. 

G.    But,  it  is  mortgaged  already. 

S.  No  matter,  tell  him  it  is  only  for  700,000, 
and  cost  two  millions  and  a  half. 

T.  Yes,  and  you  can  tell  what  became  of 
some  of  the  money,  eh? 

S.  Mr.  T.,  you  are  impertinent ;  do  you  accuse 
me  sir,  at  this  board.    Sir,  you  are  a  scoundrel. 

Here  Mr.  T.  brought  round  his  right  foot 
against  the  leg  of  the  chair  in  which  Mr.  S.,  who 
sat  next  him,  was  balancing  himself  with  offend- 
ed dignity,  and  knocking  it  from  under  him, 
brought  him  to  the  floor,  to  the  very  sensible  un- 
easiness of  his  crupper,  for  some  time  afterwards* 


AVOID  INDIVIDUAL  LIABILITY.  57 


Mr.  S.  was  a  man  of  courage,  in  words  only  ;  it 
therefore  evaporated  with  what  he  had  last  spo- 
ken, and  he  dared  not  provoke  his  assailant  any- 
further. 

Prest.  Gentlemen,  I  must  use  my  preroga- 
tive !  order — gentlemen,  order  ! 

W.  Gentlemen,  this  is  not  what  I  expected  ;  I 
must  retire. 

T.  Well,  W.,  I'll  go  with  you  ;  rogues  must 
bear  to  be  told  the  truth,  without  throwing  back 
an  insult,  generally  the  best  evidence  of  their 
guilt. 

Messrs.  W.  and  T.  here  retired,  and  the  rest 
again  took  their  seats. 

Prest.  Suppose,  gentlemen,  we  send  for 
Nicholas? 

G.  We  are  no  longer  dependant  on  him,  and 
as  it  might  eventuate  in  our  individual  liability, 
if  we  go  forward  in  this  thing,  it  is  my  opinion 
that  it  is  the  duty  of  the  president  to  conduct  the 
negotiation  officially  on  behalf  of  the  company, 
and  I  therefore  move  a  vote  of  the  board  that  he 
be  directed  accordingly. 

Prest.  Gentlemen,  I  have  resigned  one  trea- 
sury department,  sooner  than  do  another  man's 


58  BREAKING  UP — COLLOQUY. 


bidding,  and  shall  decline  the  service  ;  I  like  not 
this  business  much. 

G.  Suppose,  then,  gentlemen,  that  we  resolve 
ourselves  into  a  committee,  and  call  the  commis- 
sioner in  to-morrow. 

The  proposal  being  agreed  to,  the  board  ad- 
journed, and  Mr.  S.  still  suffering  from  the  con- 
tusion of  his  lower  spine,  walked  home  with  a 
gait  much  as  he  would  have  done,  had  he  chanced 
to  have  made  a  rent  in  his  nether  integuments, 
on  a  windy  day. 

As  they  went  out,  J.  said,  "  Mr.  G.,  look  well 
that  the  commissioner  has  not  another  interview 
with  Bold  Eno." 

"  Never  fear,"  answered  G.;  "  I  have  provided 
employment  for  him." 

While  these  things  were  going  on  in  the  parlor 
of  the  Morrison,  the  commissioner  sat  in  consul- 
tation with  John-of  the-Field,  and  the  following 
colloquy  took  place  between  them : 

John.  Mr.  Commissioner,  your  State  is  one 
of  great  resources,  I  think. 

Com.  Undoubtedly,  sir  ;  surpassing  that  of 
any  other  State  in  the  Union ;  i.  e.  when  they  are 
fully  developed. 


PALAVER. 


59 


John.  And  you  are  taking  the  right  course 
for  that  purpose.  The  example  of  New- York,  in 
interna]  improvements,  has,  by  its  success,  given 
an  impulse  throughout  the  country.  In  point  of 
locality,  you  far  exceed  us  ;  but  then,  we  have 
the  capital  here,  which  is  our  great  advantage. 

Com.  Yes,  sir,  if  we  had  the  capital  of  New- 
York  in  the  State  of  ,  to  carry  out  our  plans 

of  public  improvement,  in  twenty  years  from  this, 
we  should  exceed  her  in  population  by  a  million. 

John.  Yes,  Mr.  Commissioner,  and  your  soil  is 
so  fertile,  that  when  they  were  completed,  even  the 
farmers  of  New- York  would  draw  their  supplies 
from  you,  through  the  lakes,  the  Erie  canal,  and 
the  Erie  rail  road,  which  is  now  in  progress, 
principally  with  that  view. 

Here  John,  perceiving  a  stare  of  surprise  and 
doubt  in  the  eye  of  the  commissioner,  added,  "  i. 
e.  provided  they  could  turn  their  lands  to  a  bet- 
ter account,  by  the  cultivation  of  products  more 
congenial  to  the  poverty  of  their  soil." 

Com.  The  view  taken  of  the  subject  by  our 
legislature,  is,  that  if  we  can  borrow  the  capital 
now,  to  complete  the  works,  the  income  from 
them  will  so  increase,  with  the  increase  of  pro- 


60 


FEELING  HTS  WA¥\ 


ducts  and  population,  that  in  twenty  years  they 
will  pay  the  debt  and  interest,  and  leave  a  large 
revenue  to  the  State  ever  afterwards. 

John.  I  have  always  advised  my  friends  to 
invest  in  the  securities  of  the  Western  States,  as 
being  the  safest  they  could  make  ;  and  many  of 
them  are  large  capitalists,  who  frequently  ask 
my  advice  in  such  matters.  I  think  if  I  had  the 
agency  of  all  the  Western  States,  in  this  market, 
I  could  save  them  a  great  deal  of  money  in  their 
negotiations.  Their  debts  being  only  about  forty 
millions,  the  management  of  them  would  relieve 
me  from  too  much  leisure,  which  I  find  rather  irk- 
some, since  I  retired  from  the  active  superintend- 
ance  of  a  large  institution  here. 

Com.  Perhaps  the  best  introduction  to  such 
an  arrangement,  would  be,  for  you  to  take  up  the 
loan  now  offered. 

John.  Well,  my  investments,  latterly,  have 
been  very  large,  which  I  would  not  like  to  dis- 
turb at  present,  but  if  it  would  accommodate 
you,  I  would  take  the  matter  of  300,000  dollars 
of  the  bonds,  at  par  ;  but  then,  I  should  pay  you 
200,000  in  the  stock  of  the  Long  Island  Rail- 
road at  par,  and  the  balance  in  six  months.  This 


JOHN  OVERSHOOTS  HIS  MARK.  61 

railroad  is  estimated  to  be  the  most  promising 
stock  in  the  country;  and  its  friends  are  san- 
guine, that  when  completed,,  and  in  operation,  the 
stock  will  be  worth,  at  least,  250  per  cent.,  and 
produce  an  interest  of,  at  least,  20  per  cent,  per 
annum.  The  original  capital  was  but  700,000, 
and  with  that  capital,  and  the  income  of  the 
portion  already  finished,  say  only  about  one- 
third  the  distance,  the  company  has  already  ex- 
pended one  million  and  a  half — i.  e.,  including  a 
small  debt  still  outstanding.  I  would  not  part 
with  the  stock  for  any  other  purpose  than  to 
oblige  you — being  anxious  to  facilitate  the  inte- 
rest of  all  the  Western  States. 

Com.  My  object,  sir,  is  ready  funds  ;  they  are 
wanted  for  immediate  disbursement,  to  about  the 
amount  you  speak  of;  if  that  could  be  arranged, 
terms  could  be  made  for  the  balance. 

John.   Well,  Mr.  Commissioner,  if  that  is  the 

object  with  you,  1  think  I  could  arrange  for  300,- 

000.  and  give  you  Mississippi  funds  at  par.  The 

State  would,  of  course,  give  me  some  additional 

security,  and  you  would  deposite  the  remainder 

of  the  2,000,000  of  the  bonds  with  me  for  sale. 

My  commission  would  be  very  reasonable. 

7 


62  HIS  SOLILOQUY  THEREUPON. 

Com.  Why,  sir,  if  the  security  of  the  whole 
State  is  not  good,  they  have  nothing  else  to  offer. 
However,  I  will  think  of  your  offer  of  Mississippi 
funds.  I  have  another  call  to  make — so,  good 
morning,  sir. 

As  soon  as  the  commissioner  had  left,  John 
held  this  soliloquy  with  himself: 

"  I  am  afraid  I  have  overshot  the  mark.  That 
asking  security  was  a  bad  affair;  but  then,  I  am 
so  in  the  habit  of  asking  six  or  eight  for  one,  hang 
me  if  I  could  resist  it  in  this  instance.  The  rail- 
road stock,  too :  if  he  should  inquire  about  it, 
1  he'll  smoke  me.'  Two  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars ! — why,  I've  got  but  ten  shares  $  but  then,  I 
could  buy  the  rest  at  five  dollars  a  share.  A 
small  debt  they  owe,  indeed — ha,  ha,  ha.  I  have 
no  doubt  those  they  owe  would  be  glad  to  make 
it  small.  A  promising  company  ! — yes,  they  pro- 
mise every  thing,  and  perform  nothing.  They 
will  never  divide  one-twentieth  of  one  per  cent.,  ; 
and  then,  the  Mississippi  funds,  too — I  wish  I  had 
said  at  a  small  discount,  instead  of  par;  and  then 
I  could  have  fixed  it  at  one  per  cent.,  which  cer- 
tainly would  have  been  small  enough,  for  I  can 
buy  them  at  30  off.  Confound  my  avarice — I've 


HIS  GAME  UP. 


63 


made  a  miss-fire.  The  fellow  is  tame  as  a  span- 
iel— but  then,  he's  no  fool ;  how  he  stared,  when 
I  puffed  his  State ;  he  didn't  believe  me.  If  he 
talks  about  this,  I'm  ruined ;  but  then,  I'll  deny 
it  all,  when  he's  gone." 

When  the  commissioner  went  out,  he  pro- 
ceeded to  the  office  of  Mr.  Bottomly,  where,  up- 
on inquiry,  he  learned  the  truth,  viz :  that  Missis- 
sippi funds  were  at  30  per  cent,  discount,  and 
that  Long  Island  Railroad  was  worth  5  dollars  a 
share,  instead  of  100.  Of  course,  all  further  ne- 
gotiation with  John  ceased,  and  that  gentleman 
was  left  to  wait  the  arrival  of  a  commissioner 
from  some  state  still  farther  west,  with  whom  his 
persuasive  flattery,  tempered  by  experience  in 
its  use,  would  be  more  effectual.  And  here  I 
leave  him,  to  the  disposal  of  him,  whom  the 
State  has  adjudged  to  possess  a  wiser  head  than 
mine. 

The  commissioner,  when  he  left  the  office  of 
Mr.  Bottomly,  encountered  Mr.  G.,  who,  as  we 
have  seen,  had  just  left  the  parlor  of  the  Morri- 
son. G.  seized  him  by  the  arm,  and  insisted  that 
he  should  go  home  and  dine  with  him.  It  was 
the  intention  of  the  commissioner,  to  have  gone 


64  HOW  TO  "  COME  OVER  "  A  MAN. 

immediately  to  Mr.  Bold  Eno,  whose  advice  he 
-  now  began  to  consider  a  salvo  against  the  tricks 
and  managements  of  others ;  not  in  the  least  ima- 
gining that,  should  he  once  get  in  the  clutches  of 
„  that  gentleman,  it  would  be  like  escaping  from 
the  thievishness  of  apes,  to  throw  himself  into  the 
embrace  of  a  Bear.  Such  an  interview  was  pre- 
cisely what  G.  desired  to  prevent,  and  conse- 
quently, he  was  persuasive  to  a  degree  that  com- 
mon sense,  in  polite  society,  would  denominate 
rudeness,  The  commissioner,  who,  in  days  gone 
by,  had  often  urged  the  weary  traveller  to  par- 
*  take  of  the  bounty  of  his  board,  or  accept  the 
shelter  of  his  roof,  and  whose  open  heart  and 
hand  still  made  the  luxuries  of  his  table  the  com- 
mon property  of  his  friends,  had  no  idea  of  such 
a  perversion  of  the  rights  of  hospitality,  as  a  pros- 
titution of  them  to  the  sordid  purposes  of  inte- 
rest. He  was  therefore  persuaded  ;  and  once  at 
home  with  G.,  he  was  there  detained  through  the 
day  and  evening,  and  regaled  with  savory  viands- 
"  taste  after  taste  with  kindliest  change  upheld,", 
with  flowing  nectar,  dulcet  creams,  and  the  sweet 
sounds  of  music,  with  beauty's  winning  smiles, 
till  his  brain  whirled  with  pleasure  and  delight. 


GOOD  EFFECTS  Op  HOSPITALITY.  65 

It  is  not  my  business  to  record  what  further  took 
place  on  that  day  and  evening;  how  many  friends 
accidentally  came  in,  to  enliven  the  scene,  and 
how  certain  gentlemen,  who  were  introduced  to 
the  commissioner,  poured  flattery  into  his  ear. 
It  is  enough  that  the  deed  was  done,  and  in  the 
mind  of  the  commissioner,  the  character  of  Mr. 
G.  was  established,  as  the  most  disinterested,  po- 
lite, gentlemanly,  agreeable,  hospitable,  and  hon- 
est, of  men ;  and  to  his  guidance  he  therefore 
submitted  himself. 

On  the  following  morning,  agreeably  to  the 
preconcerted  plan,  the  commissioner,  having  been 
notified,  attended  at  the  office  of  the  Morrison,  at 
the  appointed  hour :  and,  in  the  mean  time, 
Messrs.  G.  and  S.  having  agreed  between  them- 
selves to  raise  the  amount  immediately  wanted  by 
the  commissioner,  little  remained  to  be  done. 
Terms  were  at  once  agreed  upon — two  millions  of 
bonds  were  deposited  in  the  vaults  of  the  Morri- 
son, and  in  a  few  days  the  commissioner  started 

for  the  State  of  ,  with  250,000  dollars  in 

^ood  cash,  and  highly  gratified  with  his  recep- 
tion and  success.    How  much  of  the  balance  the 

State  has  ever  received,  the  condition  of  their 

7* 


66  A  WORD  ABOUT  THE  WEST. 


treasury  will  best  explain.  Certain  it  is,  that 
the  embarrassment,  which,  in  more  than  one  in- 
stance, has  followed  similar  transactions,  has  been 
severely  felt,  and  will  be  well  remembered  by 
our  Western  brethren. 

And  here — politics  aside — a  question  may  well 
fee  asked,  which  every  man  can  answer  for  him- 
self, so  far  as  opinion  goes.  Have  not  the  inex- 
perience and  inefficiency  of  some  of  their  agents, 
and  the  villainy  and  irresponsibility  of  those  with 
whom  they  have  negotiated,  contributed  more  to 
induce  a  proposition,  in  some  of  the  States,  to 
disgrace  themselves  by  repudiating  their  debts, 
than  any  want  of  a  proper  sense  of  honor  among 
the  men  of  the  West  ?  If  such  is  admitted  to 
be  the  fact,  it  may,  in  some  degree,  excuse  the 
rashness  of  their  tempers  ;  but  whoever  "enter- 
tains such  a  propositionrafter  a  moment's  reflec- 
tion, would  sell — not  his  own  birth  right — but 
his  country  and  his  kin  for  a  morsel  of  bread. 

To  the  uninitiated,  it  will  seem  a  singular  cir- 
cumstance, that  a  company,  without  a  dollar  in 
their  vaults,  should  undertake  to  loan  two  mil- 
lions ;  but  they  forget  the  maxim,  that  credit  is 
(the  life  of  business.  This  maxim  formerly  meant5 


THE  BUBBLE  WELL  BLOWN.  6? 


that  a  credit,  well  sustained,  gave  success  to  en- 
terprise— but  by  its  misapplication  and  misuse,  it 
has  come  to  a  different  signification,  viz  :  that 
the  more  one  owes,  the  more  he  has  to  sport  with.; 
and  it  was  precisely  on  this  principle,  that  the 
Morrison  Kennel  contracted  with  the  commis- 
sioner. It  was  only  carrying  out,  in  another 
shape,  the  invention  of  Nicholas — "  always  to  be 
the  borrower,  when  he  appeared  to  lend."  They 
had  now  obtained  possession  of  2,000,000  of  the 

bonds  of  the  State  of   ,  by  advancing  only 

one  eighth  part  of  the  amount.  On  the  remain- 
der, they  could  borrow  largely,  and  they  were 
now  prepared  to  wing  aloft  a  new  flight ;  their 
gaseous  inflation  borne  upward  and  onward  by 
the  breath  of  a  fame  of  their  own  creation  ;  and 
they  were  not  long  in  choosing  which  way  they 
should  direct  their  course. 

Some  evil-minded  people  will  perhaps  begin 
to  surmise  that  Nicholas  was  the  master- moving 
spirit  in  this  matter,  and  that  he  was  artfully 
contriving  to  get  his  pay  of  the  Morrison  at  the 
expense  of  some  one  else  *  perhaps  of  that 
nondescript  body  called  the  public.  Only  one 
tthing,  however,  is  certain  ;  he  did  get  his  pay 


68         MYSTERIES  LEFT  UNEXPLAINED. 

but  as  every  story  has  a  sequel,  this  will  be 
found  to  have  one  also.  If  the  Morrison  did 
not  lend  him  the  State  Bonds  to  support  his  own 
credit  abroad,  and  then  rally  their  own,  by 
negociating  his  bonds,  appearances  and  common 
fame,  whose  poisoned  breath  we  admit  is  no 
standard  of  truth,  were  certainly  against  them. 
On  what  principle  matters  were  arranged  be- 
tween them,  is  not  certainly  known  ;  but  it  is 
now  matter  of  history  that  a  system  of  issuing 
bonds,  certificates,  indorsing  and  counter  in- 
dorsing, exchange  and  re-exchange,  was  adopted, 
by  which  they  drew  together  a  large  amount  of 
capital,  and  both  became  proud  examples  of  the 
splendid  results  which  a  single  inventive  genius, 
like  Fulton  in  steam,  or  Nicholas  in  finance, 
may  produce.  The  affection  existing  between 
them  was  equalled  only  by  the  rivalry  shown 
by  each,  in  offices  of  kindness  to  the  other. 
The  little  responsibilities  of  endorsing  or  nego- 
ciating a  million  or  two  of  bonds  or  ceriificates, 
were  all  undertaken  and  performed  as  mere 
offices  of  love.  What  if  they  were  moved  to 
such  kindness  by  the  promise,  or  the  hope,  of  a 
reciprocal  support  ?  it  but  proves  the  excellence 


CHARITY  BEGINNING  AT  HOME.  69 

of  their  hearts,  and  the  nearer  approach  to  that 
command  of  the  Master,  that  we  "  love  our 
enemies,"  and  it  is  for  such  things  only  that  we 
have  reward.  Their  duty  was  to  protect  the 
commercial  interests,  of  which  they  each  con- 
sidered themselves  as  the  head  ;  and,  therefore, 
the  first  rule  of  propriety,  and  the  first  law  of 
nature,  imposed  upon  them  the  necessity  of  first 
taking  care  of  themselves,  individually,  and  their 
liberality  in  this  respect  cannot  be  too  highly 
commended.  They  had  a  facility  for  raising 
money  that  other  people  had  not,  and  duty  re- 
quired that  they  should  enable  their  debtors  to 
pay  them;  and  if,  in  the  accomodations  neces- 
sarily granted  for  that  purpose,  the  Morrison 
should  lose  a  few  hundred  thousands,  nobody 
would  ever  know  how  it  had  been  lost.  The 
stockholders,  a  vagabond  race  scattered  over  the 
face  of  the  earth,  whom  nobody  knows, 
would  have  to  bear  it ;  and,  (aside,)  perhaps 
they  could  screen  themselves,  and  protect  the 
Morrison,  by  throwing  it  all  upon  Nicholas, 
should  things  go  wrong.  After  all,  what  was 
such  a  loss,  compared  with  the  importance  and 
public  benefit  of  supporting  the  commercial 


70 


A  CURE  FOR  HYPO. 


interest  It  was  not  to  be  considered  for  a  mo- 
ment, and  the  wisdom  of  this  conclusion  was 
shortly  made  apparent  in  its  effects.  One  gen- 
tleman is  known  to  have  recovered  entirely  from 
a  nervous  hypochondriacism,  so  severe,  that  his 
cheek  blanched  at  the  sight  of  his  bill-book,  and 
his  rotund  proportions  shrank  to  the  circumfer- 
ence of  an  eel,  from  the  self-denial  consequent 
upon  poverty — or,  what  is  more  probable,  the 
chagrin  of  disappointed  ambition.  But  we  are 
told  that  "  the  just  shall  inherit  the  earth,"  and 
so  it  was  in  this  instance  ;  it  having  been 
affirmed,  in  vindication  of  this  rule,  that  his  re- 
duced diameter,  and  assimilation  to  the  animal 
aforesaid,  enabled  bim  to  slide  the  easier  between 
the  sheriff  and  his  conscience  ;  and  while  his 
neighbors,  one  after  another,  were  tumbling  over 
the  precipice  of  ruin,  he  was  saved  from  being 
knocked  down  in  their  fall,  by  quietly  reposing 
beneath  the  shade  of  the  Morrison, 

But  I  am  growing  too  elaborate  of  descrip- 
tion, and  must  bring  this  part  of  my  story  to  a 
close.  The  subjects  and  material  of  the  picture 
I  am  contemplating,  are  so  numerous,  and  fruit- 
ful of  thought,  that  it  is  difficult  to  decide  which 


CRISIS  APPROACHING — NICK  RETIRES.  71 

to  choose,  or  where  to  stop  ;  but  the  colors  are 
too  gross,  and  weary  the  eye  and  the  mind. 
Besides,  I  hate  to  individualise,  and  must  request 
my  readers  to  bear  in  mind,  that  in  the  charac- 
ters here  described,  nobody  whatever  is  meant ; 
and  should  they  remember  ever  to  have  seen 
such  a  character  as  either  of  them,  I  must  beg 
them  to  bury  the  memory  of  their  follies  beneath 
their  more  private  and  superior  virtues,  should 
they  be  found  to  have  any ;  and  if  they  are 
penitent,  to  throw  the  mantle  of  charity  over 
the  past,  and  screen  them  from  the  rude  gaze  of 
scrutiny. 

The  time  was  now  fast  approaching  when  the 
boluses  administered  by  the  Kennel  physicians, 
could  no  longer  support  the  weakened  constitu- 
tion of  Pennsylvania's  great  pet ;  and  what  was 
of  more  importance,  in  the  opinion  of  the  Kennel 
directors,  his  credit  was  no  longer  sufficient  to 
support  them. 

Nicholas  the  first  had  retired  from  his  charge, 
to  fatten  upon  his  laurels ;  Alas !  that  they  should 
have  faded  so  soon,  and  left  him  nothing  but 
dry  leaves  whereon  to  feed  his  morbid  appetite. 

Mr.  Done-up  had  succeeded  to  his  place  as 


72 


SKULKING. 


chief  physician  ;  his  patient  had  already  suffer- 
ed a  relapse,  and  the  symptoms  were  by  no  means 
favorable.  His  physicians  recommended  a  more 
generous  diet,  but  both-  shores  of  the  atlantic 
had  already  been  dredged  for  dainties  to  satisfy 
his  hungry  maw.  Yet  still  he  grew  more  rabid, 
and  would  swallow  at  a  gulp,  what  cost  the  la- 
bor of  a  year  to  procure. 

In  this  dilemma,  the  curs  of  the  Morrison,  per- 
ceiving that  although  they  had  paid  the  debt  to 
Nicholas,  contracted  under  the  old  direction > 
they  had,  in  another  shape,  just  doubled  it  un- 
der the  new — that  each  of  them  had  served  his 
own  purpose,  and  that  not  one  of  them  owned  a 
dollar  in  the  Morrison  or  the  U.  S.  B.  they  all 
resigned  their  seats,  and  scampered  away  to 
their  dens  ;  where,  it  is  to  be  hoped,  that,  for  the 
benefit  of  the  coming  generation,  they  will  live 
and  die  in  a  good  old  age.  And  may  God  them 
assoil,  the  stockholders  and  creditors  of  the  Mor- 
rison never  will. 

As  I  approach  the  conclusion  of  this  chapter,my 
tale  grows  jsadder,  and  still  more  sad.  All  created 
beings  and  things,  which  have  beginning,  must 
also  have  an  end.  Death  lays  his  unpitying  hand 
alike  on  man,  and  every  monument  of  his  great- 


A  TOUCH  OP  THE  PATHETIC.  73 

ness.  We  wonder  at  the  duration  of  our  own  ex- 
istence ;  that  the  term  of  our  lives  should  wit- 
ness the  pride  of  a  powerful  state;  the  success- 
ful opposer  of  the  conqueror  of  armies,  and  the 
controller  of  millions,  to  dwell  only  in  memory. 
Yet  the  sad  tale  has  met  our  ear,  that  the  U.  S. 
B.  of  P.  is  no  more. — That  pillar  of  the  currency 
that  some  thought  was  based  on  a  rock  of  ages — 
that  nursing  mother,  who  would  fain  have 
gathered  the  whole  nation,  as  a  hen  gathereth 
her  brood  under  her  wings — that  giant  of  ubi- 
quity, that  dwelt  in  every  town  and  city,  a  very 
mastadon  in  power,  and  a  mastiff  in  watchful- 
ness— deserted  by  his  friends,  persecuted  by  his 
enemies,  and  cheated  by  all — expired  at  Phila- 
delphia on  the  5th  of  Feb.  A.  D.  1841,  after  one 
long  and  piteous  howl  of  20  days  and  6  hours, 
in  the  5th  year  of  his  age. 

The  power  of  sympathy  is  one  of  the  remark- 
able properties  of  life,  throughout  all  animate  and 
inanimate  creation  ;  and  it  is  a  circumstance  wor- 
thy of  note,  that,  at  the  moment  of  his  expiring, 
every  inferior  cur,  from  New  York  to  New  Or- 
leans, gave  one  loud  and  piercing  yell,  and  laid 
himself  down  in  his  den.    Throughout  the  land, 


74  A  SHOW  OF  REASON* 

old  men  bowed  themselves  in  sorrow,  widows 
wailed  in  secret,  children  began  to  cry  for  bread, 
girls  in  their  teens  shed  salt  tears,  lest  the  fall  of 
stocks  should  loose  them  their  sweethearts,  and 
a  thousand  and  one  ancient  virgins  retired  in 
privacy  to  count  their  rosaries;  not  with  catholic 
piety  and  reverence,  but  to  see  how  much  re- 
mained in  the  stocking. 

My  readers  will  be  surprised,  that  I  should  ap- 
ply the  incongruous  and  unmusical  name  of 
bull  dog  to  the  U.  S.  B. ;  but  I  must  beg  them  to 
recollect  that  I  am  in  Wall-street,  that  this  is 
Wall-street  language,  and  that  no  other  would 
be  understood  here.  And  as  this  was  the  name 
under  which  we  first  made  his  acquaintance,  for 
the  sake  of  consistency,  I  must  carry  out  the 
figure.  And  to  redeem  my  promise,  it  only  re- 
mains that  I  should  give  some  account  of  his  dis- 
ease. 

For  the  benefit  of  science,  and  the  coming  ge- 
neration, it  is  to  be  regretted  that  those  who 
have  his  body  in  keeping,  have  refused  a  post 
mortem  examination.*  Mr.  Done-up,  the  chief  phy- 


*  Since  the  above  was  written,  the  affairs  of  the  U.  S.  B. 
have  been  examined  by  a  committee. 


DISEASE — ITS  NATURE  AND  CAUSE.  75 

sician,  insists  that  he  is  not  dead,  and  that  he 
will  have  him  kept  for  a  year  and  a  day,  for  ex- 
periments of  the  galvanic  battery,  electro-mag- 
netic suspension,  and  such  other  inventions  and 
restoratives  as  his  skill  may  suggest.  But  it  is 
the  opinion  of  Wall-street  physicians,  that  the 
doctor  will  never  be  able  to  do  more  than  to  em- 
balm his  body. 

It  is  the  opinion,  also,  of  those  who  have  had 
an  opportunity  of  observing  his  symptoms,  that 
his  disease  was  a  species  of  cholera,  a  sort  of  inter- 
nal evacuation  ;  or,  to  be  more  particular  in  ex- 
planation, that  while  promises  were  going  out 
one  way,  the  specie  was  going  out  the  other  ; 
and  that  the  two  frequent  gorging  of  stocks, 
state-bonds,  cotton  speculations,  &c,  had  the 
effect,  like  major  Downing's  elder-bark  tea,  to 
work  both  ways.  One  singular  circumstance 
has  attended  him  throughout;  which,  as  it  is  a 
reversal  of  the  order  of  nature,  is  worth  mention- 
ing. In  his  case,  corruption  took  place  long  be- 
fore death,  and  mortification  afterwards.  His 
disease  is  said  to  have  had  its  origin  in  an  over- 
heating of  the  blood,  in  the  great  contest  about 
the  deposites.    But  as  this  is  a  matter  of  some 


76 


PRACTICAL  HINTS. 


dispute,  I  leave  the  point  to  be  settled  by  the 
great  successors  of  their  "  illustrious  predeces- 
sors"— Dr.  Done-up  of  Philadelphia,  and  Dr. 
Ran-down  of  Kinderhook,  both  of  whom,  it  is 
supposed  will  now  find  sufficient  leisure,  amica- 
bly to  settle  their  differences. 

My  friend,  the  relator  of  the  foregoing,  here  left 
me  abruptly  again,  but  as  I  am  sure  to  find  him 
in  the  same  place  to-morrow,  I  shall  not  fail  to 
make  him  a  visit.  What  the  subject  of  his  con- 
versation will  be,  I  cannot  tell,  but  as  he  has 
found  me  a  willing  listener,  I  feel  sure  that  he 
will  be  as  communicative  as  ever. 

It  was  my  intention,  at  the  close  of  this  chap- 
ter, to  have  expanded  a  little  on  the  great  value 
to  the  public,  of  corporations,  when  in  the  hands 
of  men  of  talent,  property,  and  credit,  who  can, 
without  responsibility  to  themselves,  act  for  the 
benefit  of  the  stock-holders.  But,  as  I  have  al- 
ready detained  my  readers  too  long,  and  since 
people  will  think  for  themselves,  right  or  wrong, 
if  they  ever  chance  to  think  at  all,  I  need  give 
no  further  evidence  of  their  utility,  and  entire 
safety  in  such  hands,  than  the  following  facts. 
Among  all  the  officers  and  directors  of  the  Mor- 


THE  WAY  OF  SAFETY.  77 

rison  Kennel,  and  the  U.  S.  B.,  in  which  about 
forty  millions  of  dollars  have  been  totally  sunk 
and  lost,  not  one  of  them  ever  failed,  or  lost  a 
dollar  in  his  individual  capacity  ;  and.  had  the 
stockholders  loaned  their  capital  directly  to  the 
merchants,  through  whom  it  will  perhaps  be 
said  it  has  been  lost,  instead  of  investing  it  in 
those  stocks,  they  would  have  saved  in  the  last 
25  years,  only  about  50  millions  of  dollars,  in 
their  expenses,  investments  in  unconvertible  pro- 
perty for  their  splendid  accommodations,  and 
losses  consequent  upon  their  management  to  sus- 
tain themselves  in  a  ruinous  business. 

But,  since  commerce  has  so  organized  herself, 
that  such  institutions  are  necessary,  if  stock- 
holders will  not  look  after  their  own  interest,  if 
they  will  allow  their  agents  to  pursue  their  own 
pleasure  without  supervision,  or  accountability — 
if  they  will  not  employ  as  their  agents,  such  men 
as  will  have  some  reference  to  a  good  conscience, 
and  common  sense,  something  besides  selfish- 
ness in  the  performance  of  their  duty  to  their 
principals,  and  the  public,  they  deserve  to  lose 
their  money. 

I  have  no  wish  to  appear  the  censor  of  the  past. 


78      WHAT  EXPERIENCE  SAYS  ABOUT  IT. 

or  to  make  wise  saws  for  the  future.    But  for  the 
benefit  of  those  who  may  have  a  little  money 
left  to  invest,  I  will  give  them,  in  few  words,  the 
experience  of  thirty  years.    Every  institution, 
established  for  the  purpose  of  creating  capita],  in- 
stead of  investing  that  already  possessed — every 
one  established  for  the  purposes  of  speculation, 
or  monopoly,  of  any  kind — or  for  the  promotion 
of  the  interest  of  any  particular  individuals — ev- 
ery one  which  contracts  debts  against  itself  be- 
yond the  immediate  means  of  paying,  and  thus 
loses  its  independence  of  character — and  every 
one  which  perverts  its  means  from  the  legitimate 
use,  which,  on  a  fair  construction,  was  contem- 
plated in  its  creation— either  has  ruined,  or  soon- 
er or  later  will  ruin,  itself,  its  stockholders,  and 
its  customers. 


79 


CHAPTER  IV. 

SHOWING  HOW  STOCKS  ARE  BOUGHT  AND  SOLD 
 HOW  BROKERS  GET  OUT  OF  A  BAD  SPECULA- 
TION HOW  MONEY  IS  SOMETIMES  MADE  BY 

DOING  A  LOSING  BUSINESS — HOW  DISCOUNTS 
ARE  MADE  AND  OBTAINED,  &C.  &C. 

Before  proceeding  to  relate  the  conversation  of 
my  friend  this  day,  I  mast  first  state  a  few  facts, 
for  the  information  of  those  who  are  not  already 
acquainted  with  them. 

The  Board  of  Brokers  have  many  rules  for 
their  government  ;  one  of  which  is — that,  when 
a  broker  is  employed  by  another  person  to  buy 
or  sell  stock  on  time,  he  has  the  right  to  give  the 
name  of  his  principal  within  twenty-four  hours, 
and  then,  if  the  other  party  is  not  satisfied  with 
the  security,  he  is  required  to  deposite  ten  per 
cent.,  or  the  contract  is  cancelled.  If  the  broker 
so  employed,  does  not  give  the  name  of  his  prin- 


80  THE  LAWLESS  HAVE  LAWS. 


cipal,  he  assumes  the  responsibility  himself.  All 
contracts  for  the  purchase  or  sale  of  stocks,  on 
time,  are,  in  themselves,  illegal  ;  the  contract 
cannot  be  enforced  by  any  law,  and  the  only  se- 
curity that  operators  have  for  their  fulfilment,  is, 
that  rule  of  the  board  which  expels  a  member,  if 
he  fails  in  his  contracts.  Just  as  all  gamblers 
may  be  supposed  to  expel  a  man  from  their  soci- 
ety, who  takes  up  his  winnings,  but  never  pays 
his  losses  :  or,  upon  the  same  principle  on  which 
there  is  held  to  be  honor  among  thieves — who- 
ever takes  more  than  his  share,  is  expelled  from 
the  gang. 

Slocks  sold  on  time,  are  seldom  delivered  ;  but, 
when  the  contract  is  mature,  the  difference  be- 
tween the  sale  and  the  average  market  value  then, 
is  paid  over  by  the  loser. 

There  are  a  few  men  of  property,  not  brokers, 
who  occasionally  buy  fancy  stocks  in  Wall-street, 
when  money  is  scarce,  and  sell  again  when  it  is 
more  plenty,  and  reap  a  profit  by  it ;  but  their 
number  is  so  small,  that  they  have  never  attained 
the  respectability  of  any  distinguishing  name. 

There  is  a  larger  class,  who  sometimes  control 
a  good  deal  of  money,  and  who  make  speculation 


BULL-BACKERS  AND  BEAR-TRAPS.  81 


their  business.  These  generally  unite  in  squads3 
for  the  purpose  of  cornering — which  means,  that 
they  first  get  the  control  of  some  particular  stock, 
and  then,  by  making  a  great  many  contracts  on 
time,  compel  the  parties  to  pay  whatever  differ- 
ence they  choose — or  rather,  I  should  say,  what- 
ever difference  they  can  get — for  they  sometimes 
overrate  the  weight  of  the  purse  of  those  they 
contract  with.  These  persons  are  denominated 
Bull-backers,  or  Bear-traps,  according  to  the  na- 
ture of  their  operations.  The  first  signifies  that 
they  have  bought  stock  largely,  and  hold  it ;  and 
the  second,  that  they  have  sold  stock  which  they 
have  not  got,  and  trust  to  circumstances  to  be 
able  to  supply  it.  The  brokers,  themselves,  in 
these  cases,  are  called  Bulls  and  Bears. 

There  is  another,  and  a  much  larger  class, 
who,  deceived  by  appearances,  come  into  the 
market  without  any  knowledge  of  it;  and  gene- 
rally lose  what  they  invest.  These  are  called 
Flunkies. 

With  this  elucidation  of  terms,  I  am  ready  to 
proceed  with  my  friend's  narrative,  whom,  true 
to  his  habit,  I  found  at  the  spot,  and  anxious  for 
a  listener;  and,  from  tha  nature  of  his  remarks, 


82     HOW  TO  QUALIFY  FOR  WALL-STREET. 

I  am  induced  to  believe  that  he  suspected  me  of 
some  desire  or  design  to  enter  on  the  business  of 
stock  jobbing. 

"If,"  said  he,  "you  have  any  intention  of  en- 
tering into  business  in  Wall-street,  you  ought 
first  to  know,  that,  although  there  are  many  re- 
spectable men  and  firms  here,  who  have  accu- 
mulated property  and  credit,  by  a  long  course  of 
industry  and  application,  as  in  any  other  branch 
of  business,  there  is,  nevertheless,  a  very  large 
class,  who  look  upon  every  new  comer  as  a  fit 
subject  for  their  stratagems.  And  very  few  such 
escape  one  of  two  extremes  :  either  the  loss  of 
their  property,  or  a  sacrifice  of  conscience,  honor, 
honesty,  and  every  noble  principle,  to  the  mean 
and  sordid  one  of  getting  money.  The  first 
sacrifice  you  would  be  called  upon  to  make, 
would  be,  confidence  and  respect  towards  your 
neighbors — you  must  disbelieve  every  thing  you 
hear  and  see,  and  look  upon  every  one  as  having 
a  design  on  your  purse:  no  very  comfortable 
position  for  an  honest  man. 

A  very  large  portion  of  the  stocks  termed 
(  fancies,'  and  in  which  they  mostly  deal,  are  en- 
tirely worthless  in  themselves  ;  unlike  articles 


FANCIES  BETTER  THAN  SOUND  STOCKS.  83 

of  merchandise,  which  may  be  seen  and  exam- 
ined by  the  dealer,  and  which  always  have  an 
intrinsic  value  in  every  fluctuation  of  the  market, 
these  stocks  are  wholly  wrapped  in  mystery  ;  no 
one  knows  any  thing  about  them,  except  the. of- 
ficers and  directors  of  the  companies,  who,  from 
their  position,  are  not  the  most  likely  men  to  tell 
you  the  truth.    They  serve  no  other  purpose, 
therefore,  than  as  the  representative  of  value  in 
stock  gambling,  which  might  just  as  well  be 
wholly  imaginary,  and  of  any  other  kind,  as 
these  ;  and  you  would  soon  learn,  that  the  reason 
why  there  is  so  much  dealing  in  depreciated 
stocks,  and  so  little  in  those  which  are  solvent 
and  at  par,  is  this  :  Nearly  all  the  fluctuations  in 
their  prices,  are  artificial — a  small  fluctuation  is 
more  easily  produced  than  a  large  one,  and  as 
the  calculations  are  made  on  the  par  value,  a 
fluctuation  of  one  per  cent,  on  a  stock  worth  only 
twenty  dollars  a  share,  is  just  five  times  as  much 
on  the  amount  of  money  invested,  as  it  would  be 
on  a  par  stock.     Consequently,  if  a  'Flunkie' 
can  be  drawn  in,  he  may  be  fleeced  five  times  as 
quick  in  these,  as  in  good  stocks. 

The  arts  and  tricks  resorted  to,  in  this  kind  of 


84  HOW  FALSE  LIGHTS  ARE  SHOWN. 


gambling,  are  the  same  as  in  all  others.  When 
the  brokers  and  speculators  engaged  in  it,  have 
no  customers  on  whom  to  practice,  and  each  one 
is  shy  of  the  other,  they  lovingly  play  among 
themselves.  To  keep  up  appearances,  large 
transactions  take  place,  which,  by  mutual  under- 
standing, are  not  to  be  fulfilled,  and  like  children 
at  chequers,  when  the  game  is  out,  the  kernels 
are  thrown  into  common  stock  again,  and  a  new 
one  begun.  And,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  these 
transactions  are  published  in  all  the  commercial 
newspapers,  and  go  forth  to  the  world  as  the  evi- 
dences of  value,  and  the  condition  of  the  money 
market,  to  deceive  the  unwary.  Every  editor, 
who  properly  regards  the  welfare  of  the  commu- 
nity, over  which  his  position  gives  him  great  in- 
fluence, ought  at  once  to  refuse  the  publication  of 
any  sale  of  stock,  but  such  as  are  of  standard  and 
intrinsic  value  ;  for  it  is  by  these  means,  that  so 
many  are  drawn  from  their  regular  pursuits,  into 
ruinous  speculations  ;  when,  if  nothing  but  truth 
were  told  them,  they  would  stay  at  home,  and 
save  their  money — to  say  nothing  of  the  mischief 
of  idleness  and  dissipation,  which  the  habit  of 
gambling  engenders. 


WHO  IS  TO  BLAME. 


85 


I  must  not  be  understood  as  applying  what  I 
have  said,  or  shall  say,  to  every  man  in  Wall- 
street  :  far  otherwise.  Nor  would  I  be  understood 
as  applying  it  to  brokers  exclusively,  or  to  any 
one  in  particular.  I  only  say,  that  if  the  coat  I 
shall  cut  out  suits  any  man's  shape  and  dimen- 
sions, let  him  put  it  on.  On  the  whole,  the 
brokers  are  less  to  blame  than  those  who  sup- 
port them  ;  and,  if  left  to  themselves,  their  trade 
in  fancy-stocks  would  scon  cease.  If  people 
will  gamble,  there  must  be  some  place  to  do  it, 
and  some  persons  as  directors,  agents,  and  co- 
partners in  the  business  ;  and,  until  the  people 
are  reformed,  it  is  doubtful  if  Crockford,  in  Lon- 
don, and  the  brokers  in  Wall-street,  are  not  more 
honest  and  respectable  than  their  supporters. 

Stock  gamblers  of  very  small  capital,  often 

have   contracts   pending,  of  many  hundreds 

of  thousands  of  dollars — they  sometimes  operate 

for  a  rise,  sometimes  for  a  fall,  of  prices.    In  the 

first,  case  they  buy  deliverable  at  a  future  time, 

at  a  certain  price.    In  the  second,  can  they 

sell  in  the  same  way.    And,  in  either  case,  their 

profit  or  loss  depends  on  the  rise  or  fall  of  the 

stock  bought  or  sold  ;  as,  indeed,  all  their  profits 

9 


86  SECRETS  LET  OUT. 

do  ;  for  there  is  no  such  thing  as  a  dealer's  profit 
for  the  labor  and  risk  of  distribution  as  in  mer- 
chandise.   The  whole  process  is  a  mere  betting 
upon  the  future  value.    In  this  way,  it  will  be 
seen  that  the  number  of  chances  for  gain  or  loss 
is  just  doubled,  as  compared  with  dealers  in 
merchandise,  who  always  get  what  they  buy, 
and  sell  only  what  they  have  got.    They  fre- 
quently make  a  condition  to  their  time-contracts 
of  "  buyer's  option,"  of  "  seller's  option,"  which 
means,  that  the  person  to  whom  the  option  is 
given,  may,  at  any  time  within  the  period  of  the 
term  of  sale,  by  giving  one  day's  notice,  call  for 
the  stocks,  and  this  enables  them  to  take  advan- 
tage of  any  temporary  fluctuation  which  may 
happen,  or  which  the  parties  interested  may  be 
able  to  create.    These  circumstances  easily  ex- 
plain the  reason  why  fortunes  are  often  so  sud- 
denly made  or  lost  in  stocks.    No  system  could 
be  devised  better  calculated  than  this  is,  to  ex-- 
cite  a  gambling  propensity,  and  afford  an  oppor- 
tunity for  the  exercise  of  ingenuity  and  cun- 
ning. 

"  But,"  said  my  friend,  "  lest  I  should  weary 
your  patience,  by  too  much  generalizing,  and  se- 


A  NO.  1.  CHARACTER.  87 

riousnessj  I  will  inform  you  how  Mr.  Tell-it  got 
out  of  a  bad  speculation. 

Mr.  T.  is  a  regular  descendant  of  Mr.  Jacob 
Broker,  of  the  seventh  generation,  and  one  that 
does  honor  to  his  ancestral  renowh.  No  greater 
contradiction  of  terms  can  possibly  be  used, 
than  exists  between  his  name  and  character,  for 
he  was  never  known  to  tell  a  thing  that  he 
knew,  however  trifling.  His  conversation  and 
answers  are  wholly  by  interrogatory.  When 
asked  at  what  price  he  will  sell5  his  answer  is, 
li  what  will  you  give  T  and  he  never  commits 
himself  in  a  promise,  without  first  receiving  a 
promise  of  another,  or,  what  suits  hisjaste  much 
better,  something  tangible  in  its  stead.  This 
peculiarity  of  mind  has  led  to  one  great  virtue, 
to  which  I  bear  willing  and  honorable  testimony 
—he  was  never  known  to  tell  a  lie.  If  people 
take  false  impressions,  it  is  because  they  assume 
false  premises — if  they  indulge  in  wrong  opi- 
nions, it  is  because  they  have  not  been  diligent 
enough  in  search  of  truth— and,  as  he  is  a  com- 
petitor for  the  great  prize  of  life,  he  cannot  spend 
fiis  time  to  correct  other  people's  deficiencies. 
His  knowledge  of  men  and  things  is  regulated 


88 


HIS  CHARACTER. 


by  their  properties,  and  his  estimate  of  the  pro- 
per pursuits  of  life  has  received  a  bias  from  his 
literal  construction  of  the  Apocalypse,  in  which 
the  streets  of  the  new  Jerusalem  are  described 
as  being  of  pure  gold  ;  and  he  appears  to  re- 
gard the  possession  of  it  here,  as  the  surest  pass- 
port on  his  way  there.  In  exactness  and  punc- 
tuality, he  is  a  model  for  imitation.  He  gene- 
rally operates  "  for  a  fall,"  and,  like  his  great 
progenitor,  his  interest  compels  him  to  take  plea- 
sure rather  in  demolishing  than  in  building  up. 
His  assiduity  and  skill  are  such,  that,  united 
with  his  great  physical  force,  mechanically  de- 
nominated "  a  purchase  power"  he  can  tear 
down  more  in  one  week,  than  the  whole  frater- 
nity can  build  up  in  a  year  *  and  he  has  been 
known  to  topple  a  Bank,  an  Insurance  compa- 
ny, a  Rail-Road,  or  a  whole  bevy  of  brokers,  by 
a  single  application  of  his  lever. 

But  such  is  the  variety  and  opposition  of  in- 
terests created  by  the  multitude  of  heads,  and  the 
multiform  opinions  entertained  by  them,  the 
circumstances  of  which  are  varied  by  every 
transaction  that  takes  place,  of  which  none  but 
those  concerned  in  them  can  have  any  control, 


GETS  TRAPPED. 


89 


that  the  wittiest  sometimes  get  outwitted,  and 
the  strongest  outdone. 

Not  long  since,  a  squad  of  Bull-backers,  had 
for  some  months  been,  secretly,  and  unknown  to 
Mr.  T.,  getting  control  of  a  certain  stock,  intend- 
ing to  "  corner"  some  one  with  it ;  and,  aware 
of  Mr.  T's.  tearing  down  propensity,  after  due  con- 
sultation, they  laid  a  scheme  whereby  to  entrap 
i  him.  Deputing  an  agent  of  well  known 
paucity  of  dollars,  they  sent  him  to  Mr.  T.  to 
get  a  loan  of  money  on  a  large  amount  of  the 
aforesaid  stock.  The  loan  was  completed  for 
the  term  of  90  days,  Mr.  T.  advancing  two 
thirds  the  nominal  value.  Whether  he  had  any 
ulterior  object,  or  not,  in  lending  the  money  is 
not  known ;  but,  as  he  seldom  made  such  loans 
when  such  object  did  not  sooner  or  later  disclose 
itself^  it  is  suspected,  that  in  this  case,  he  looked 
beyond  the  present  bargain,  and,  believing  that 
his  debtors  would  be  obliged  to  sell  the  stock  he 
held,  for  what  it  would  bring,  to  pay  his  loan 
when  due,  he  commenced  his  operations  for  a 
fall  in  the  stock,  by  selling  it  all  out.  It  so  hap- 
pened, however,  that  the  Bull-backers  aforesaid, 

were  the  buyers  of  it,  and  this  was  just  the  snare 

9* 


90  IN  A  QUANDARY. 

into  which  they  desired  to  lead  Mr.  T.,  knowiug 
that  when  their  agent  should  pay  up  his  loan, 
and  call  for  the  stock,  T.  would  be  obliged  to 
buy  it  of  them,  at  such  increased  prices,  as  they 
should  dictate.  And  Mr.  T.  was  soon  made 
sensible  of  his  condition,  by  his  debtor  calling 
long  before  the  time,  and  offering  to  pay  up  the 
loan,  and  withdraw  the  Stock.  He  was  certain- 
ly surprised,  but  his.  quiet  and  collected  manner 
betrayed  no  emotion.  And  here  I  must  render 
another  tribute  to  his  character.  He  certainly 
bears  his  profits  and  losses  well ;  as  great  men 
are  said  to  bear  their  honors  and  misfortunes, 
with  unassuming  and  unrepining  philosophy. 
The  discovery  of  his  situation  however,  called  for 
the  exercise  of  his  sagacity,  and  he  modestly  de- 
clined receiving  the  money,  only  saying,  that  he 
preferred  it  should  rest  for  the  time  agreed  Sn. 

As  soon  as  his  debtor  had  gone  out,  he  thrust 
his  hands  in  his  pockets,  his  eyes  resting  on  the 
floor  in  front,  and  sticking  out  his  lips,  in  a  way 
which  no  other  man  does,  he  muttered  to  him- 
self "I'm  in  a  bear-trap — this  won't  do.  The 
dogs  will  "come  over"  me.  I  shall  be  mulct  in  a 
loss.    But  I've  got  time — I'll  turn  the  scale, 


WORKS  OUT  BY   DRAWING  OTHERS  IN.  91 

I'll  help  the  bulls,  operate  for  a  rise,  and  draw 
in  the  flunkies." 

These  men,  I  should  have  said  before,  have 
no  other  rule  of  judgment  for  their  operations 
than  to  follow  in  the  wake  of  some  great  and 
successful  speculator.  Mr.  T.  very  properly  re- 
gards them  as  sheep  for  the  slaughter  ;  and  al- 
though the  milk  of  human  kindness  certainly  is 
a  component  of  his  heart,  he  makes  no  scruple 
of  sacrificing  a  score  of  them  at  a  time.  Why 
should  he  ?  for  killed  and  eaten  they  certainly 
will  be  by  somebody  :  but  they  are  a  genitive 
race,  and  re-produce  as  fast  as  destroyed. 

Mr.  T.  had  need  of  no  further  exertion,  to  ac- 
complish his  purpose,  than  to  make  his  course 
manifest  to  them,  they  all  followed  his  apparent 
lead,  as  sheep  will  follow  one  another  over  a 
wall,  if  they  all  fall  into  a  ditch  on  the  other 
side.  Even  the  wise  man  of  Israel,  by  his  own 
confession,  did  not  know  every  tiling.  "  The  way 
of  the  serpent  on  the  rock  was  too  wonderful 
even  for  him"  and  so  in  this  case  ;  the  way  of 
their  leader  was  to  them,  "  past  finding  out."  But 
the  secret  of  the  management  necessary,  in  this 
case,  is,  to  do  just  the  opposite  of  what  one  ap- 


92  EVILS  OP  TALKING  IN  SLEEP. 

pears  to  do.  Mr.  T.  therefore  continued  to 
operate  visibly  for  a  fall,  by  selling  out  small 
sums  for  future  delivery,  which  he  took  care  to 
have  trumpeted  by  another,  while  he  was  very 
reserved  himself.  He  thus  drew  all  the  "flun- 
kies" after  him,  as  they  supposed,  while  he  was  in 
reality  the  purchaser,  through  his  agents,  of  all 
that  they  contracted  to  sell,  and  by  this  means, 
before  the  expiration  of  the  loan,  he  was  in  pos- 
session of  the  stock  to  deliver,  with  a  difference 
of  ten  thousand  dollars  in  his  favor,  against  the 
flunkies.  These  things  would  never  have  been 
known,  but  that  T.  sometimes  talks  in  his  sleep, 
and  while  chuckling  over  the  ruse  de  guerre,  he 
recounted  the  whole  story,  and  was  overheard 
by  his  chum,  who  thought  the  joke  too  good  to 
be  lost. 

And  now,  said  my  friend,  as  I  am  in  the  way 
of  story  telling,  I  will  tell  you  how  money  has 
been  made,  by  doing  a  losing  business.  It  will 
have  been  seen  already  that  the  failure  of  a  stock 
broker,  does  not  involve  commercial  dishonor. 
It  is  a  mere  acknowledgment,  of  his  inability  to 
pay  his  bets,  for  debts  they  are  not.  When  this 
has  happened,  he  suffers  the  penalty  of  being  ex- 


HOW  BROKERS   SOMETIMES  FAIL.  93 


pelled  from  the  board.  It  then  becomes  the  in- 
terest of  thosejo  whom  differences  are  due,  (the 
term  used  for  stock  debts,)  to  get  what  they  can 
and  discharge  him.  The  amount  he  will  be 
willing  to  pay,  depends  on  three-fold  circum- 
stances— the  amount  of  means  he  possesses — 
his  own  sense  of  obligation — and  the  credit  and 
advantages  he  is  to  gain,  by  being  reinstated. 
And  a  settlement  once  made  with  his  creditors, 
it  becomes  the  interest  of  all,  to  reinstate  him  ; 
for  society  becomes  disjointed,  by  losing  its  pro- 
minent members. 

When  a  broker  operates  for  others,  as  his 
principals,  he  usually  requires  a  deposit  of  ten 
per  cent.,  as  security  against  loss.  They  gene- 
rally operate  in  different  kinds  of  stock,  some  of 
which  turn  favorably  for  their  interest,  and  the 
differences  are  in  their  favor.  In  others  the  dif- 
ference is  against  them,  according  as  their  risks, 
or  their  judgment,  may  have  proved  favorable, 
or  unfavorable.  Commonly  their  operations  are 
very  large  in  amount,  and  it  sometimes  happens, 
that  the  fluctuations  are  greater  than  the  secu- 
rity, and  by  the  occurrence  of  some  unforeseen 
event,  like  the  recent  failure  of  the  United  States 


94 


HOW  THEY  GET  CP  AGAIN. 


bank,  a  fair  adjustment  of  the  differences  against 
them,  would  ruin  all  the  parties,  consequently, 
one  or  all  of  them  must  be  sacrificed.  Expedi- 
ency, and  interest  dictate  that  it  shall  be  but  one, 
and  that  one  the  broker.    He  consents,  because 
it  involves  less  dishonor  with  him  than  the 
others.    They  can  be  screened  by  his  defalca- 
tion, and,  it  is  equally  his  interest  to  take  care  of 
his  customers,  as  himself.   And  if  he  has  not  too 
delicate  a  conscience,  (and  all  men  have  not,) 
the  way  is  now  open  for  the  following  manage- 
ment. When  differences  are  in  his  favor,  he  may 
avow  his  principals,  and  the  losers  must  pay,  or 
themselves  suffer  expulsion  from  the  board. 
Where  the  differences  are  against  him,  he  may 
keep  the  responsibility  to  himself,  and  as  they 
are  very  large,  he  will  be  able  to  compromise 
them,  for  the  ten  per  cent,  deposited,  and  perhaps 
jess,  if  he  has  not  been  careful  to  exact  the  secu- 
rity.   And  when  the  whole  is  adjusted,  if  the 
differences  collected  exceed  the  ten  per  cent, 
paid,  there  is  a  profit  to  divide,  among  them  ali. 
And,  if  these  operations  are  not  sometimes  per- 
formed with  a  less  scrupulous  regard  to  figures, 
suspicion  has  been  guilty  of  a  libel.    I  do  not 


AMUSING  OPERATIONS. 


95 


say,  that  this  is  a  common  practice  among  the 
brokers,  but  the  power  of  doing,  and  the  facility 
of  screening  it,  are  equivalent  to  an  invitation  to 
rogues  to  embrace  it,  and  all  the  world  knows, 
how  ready  they  are  to  seize  an  opportunity. 

Although  stock-speculators,  generally,  affect 
to  be  very  secret,  as  well  as  very  cunning,  in 
their  dealings,  they  frequently  contrive  to  find 
out  each  other's  business,  and  the  manner  in 
which  their  liabilities  sometimes  develope  them- 
selves is  amusing.    It  lately  happened  that  two 
speculators,  Mr.  A.  and  Mr.  B.,  had  been  ope- 
rating in  different  kinds  t>f  stock,  and  each  of 
them  thought  he  had  a  considerable  amount  of 
profits  to  collect,  and  losses  to  pay  ;  and  the 
whole  having  passed  through  a  broker's  hands, 
neither  of  them  was  supposed  to  know  who  the 
principals  were.    Circumstances  led  to  a  com- 
paring of  notes,  when  it  was  found  that  their 
claims  on  each  other  were  so  nearly  balanced, 
that  they  settled  it  by  offset.    It  is  believed  that 
at  least  one  of  them  intended  to  collect  his  pro- 
fits, and  back  out  of  his  losses  ;  but  that  the 
other,  more  cunning  than  he,  had  contrived  to 
take  the  place  of  a  third  party,  (Mr.  C.,)  who 


96  WALL- STREET  NOT  A  SAFE  PLACE. 

was  the  real  seller  of  the  winning  stock  on  his 
side,  and  when  a  settlement  had  been  made  be- 
tween A.  and  B.,  that  B.  and  C.  divided  the 
amount  of  profits  on  C.'s  stock  between  them. 
By  these  means,  the  third  party,  C,  was  enabled 
to  collect  half  of  a  profit,  which  he  would  never 
have  got  otherwise,  and  the  other,  Mr.  B.,  was 
saved  paying  half  a  loss,  which  he  would  other- 
wise have  had  to  pay,  or  to  sacrifice  his  broker, 
who,  between  them  both,  was  saved  from  a 
dilemma. 

"  And  now,"  said  my  friend, "  unless  you  can 
follow  all  these  windings,  and  are  ready  to  turn 
as  sharp  a  corner  as  the  rest  of  them,  let  me  ad- 
vise you  not  to  stay  long  in  Wall-street  ;  for, 
depend  upon  it^  while  you  are  here,  you 
are  in  the  midst  of  temptation,  and  no  man  ever 
trifled  long  with  that4  and  came  oif  with  his 
honor  unscathed,  and  his  heart  not  indurated." 

I  thanked  my  friend  for  his  advice,  and  re- 
plied, "  that  I  had  already  determined,  that  I 
could  never  aspire  to  a  professorship,  nor  even  a 
pupilage,  in  a  school  requiring  such  active  ener- 
gies of  body  and  mind." 

But  my  friend  continued,  and,  taking  out  his 


FICTITIOUS  CREDIT. 


97 


watch,  remarked,  that,  as  he  had  yet  time  to 
spare,  if  I  pleased  to  listen,  he  would  tell  me 
something  about  the  manner  in  which  discounts 
were  sometimes  made,  and  obtained.  And, 
willing  to  be  informed  of  all  particulars,  in 
which  I  had  now  become  deeply  interested,  I 
signified  my  wish  to  hear  how  these  important 
appendages  of  trade  are  managed. 

"Young  men,"  said  he,  "often  mistake  the 
basis  of  their  own  credit,  and  are  flattered  by 
the  freedom  and  liberality  with  which  money 
is  sometimes  lent  them.  They  could  not  possi- 
bly commit  a  more  fatal  error,  and  this  arises 
in  a  great  degree,  perhaps,  from  the  false  esti- 
mate of  what  is  commonly  called  money. 

The  system  of  Bank  credit,  which  has  so 
widely  obtained  in  this  country,  and  which 
allows  of  a  circulation  of  their  notes,  or  bills  of 
credit,  as  a  substitute  for  money,  has  been  pro- 
ductive of  untold  benefits.  But  its  long  success 
has  led  to  its  abuse  ;  and  the  manifest  advan- 
tage, to  those  who  held  the  privilege,  has  led 
designing  men  to  seek  an  influence  in  its  con- 
trol.    In  times  of  ease  and  plenty,  these  gentle- 

'men  are  ever  ready  to  exchange  their  credit  for 

10 


98 


COMMON  MISTAKE. 


the  substantial  securities  of  the  merchant,  re- 
ceiving therefor  the  premium  of  interest,  as 
their  profit.  These  Bank-credits,  being  readily 
convertible  for  the  payment  of  debts,  entice  men 
of  small  means  into  an  enlarged  business. 
The  error  of  young  merchants  seems  to  have 
been,  an  appreciation  of  Bank  issues,  to  be  the 
same  as  money,  instead  of  an  equivalent  in  cre- 
dit,and  a  discount  obtained,  as  an  exchange  of 
securities  for  cash,  instead  of  a  new  debt  con- 
tracted. They  have  overlooked  the  fact,  that 
the  same  circumstances  that  will  cause  distress 
to  them,  will  also  cause  it  to  the  Bank,  and  bring 
with  it  a  curtailment  of  their  accommodations, 
just  at  the  time  when  their  wants  require  their 
enlargement.  Their  independence  is  gone,  as 
soon  as  they  are  obliged  to  solicit  a  favor,  and 
if  in  the  hands  of  heartless  and  designing  men, 
this  is  just  the  time  when  advantage  will  be 
taken  of  their  necessities,  as  long  as  their  secu- 
rities are  good  ;  and  they  will  find,  when  it  is 
too  late,  that  they  have  leaned  on  a  broken 
reed. 

The  habit  of  merchants  leaning  on  a  Bank- 
credit,  and  considering  it  better  than  their  own, 


HOW  THEY  GET  SERVED.  99 

with  the  dependence  growing  out  of  it,  has  ena- 
bled the  latter,  by  common  consent,  to  throw 
around  it  a  sacredness  of  character  thatdoes  not 
attach  to  credit  in  any  other  place  or  form  ;  and 
instances  are  of  daily  occurrence,  where  men 
do  injustice  to  a  neighbor,  to  enable  them  to  pay 
a  note  at  the  Bank  ;  while  the  latter,  to  protect 
themselves,  will  sacrifice  a  score  or  two  of  their 
customers,  without  mercy  or  compunction. 
When  men  become  necessitous,  they  are  afraid 
to  let  it  be  known  out  of  doors,  because  it  will 
injure  their  credit ;  and  they  will  make  almost 
any  sacrifice  in  private,  to  save  such  a  mortifi- 
cation. And  to  this  fact,  designing  and  unprin- 
cipled men,  who,  in  times  of  pressure,  convert 
the  capital  of  a  Bank  into  a  means  of  preying 
upon  their  customers,  owe  their  security  in  doing 
it ;  when,  if  the  undisguised  particulars  could  be 
known,  they  would  immediately  lose  their  char- 
ter and  their  reputation. 

The  way  these  things  worked  a  few  years 
since,  in  the  Stork  Bank  and  the  Water  Works 
Bank  in  this  city,  is  worthy  of  being  told  by  way 
of  illustration. 

The  cashiers  of  these  banks  thought  them- 


100  HUNGRY  BEGGARS. 

selves  so  firmly  seated  in  power,  that  nothing 
could  move  them.  By  way  of  brevity,  I  will 
call  them  Jack  and  Bob  ;  but  let  no  one  suppose 
that  the  impudent  familiarity  of  using  these  bar- 
barous corruptions  of  a  Christian  name,  was  ever 
permitted  to  any  but  themselves.  The  bad  times 
— which  in  business  parlance,  in  its  proper  con- 
struction, means,  that  period  of  time  when  the 
mischiefs  designed  by  one  party,  or  arising  from 
the  follies  and  imprudences  of  the  other,  are  in 
course  of  developement — brought  crowds  of  anx- 
ious applicants  daily  to  the  counter  of  the  bank* 
They  arranged  themselves  in  rows  along  the 
walls,  or  by  the  side  of  the  counter,  with  anxious 
faces,  each  one  waiting  for  his  turn,  and  as  each 
received  a  negative,  his  eye  flashed  with  anger, 
or  his  cheek  blanched  with  despair  ;  and  while 
others  would  march  up,  to  prefer  their  own 
claims,  in  the  vain  hope  of  better  success,  those 
behind  occasionally  peered  out  from  the  long  line 
in  which  they  stood,  and  cursed  the  gravity  and 
self-possession  of  the  cashier,  while  he  held  a  long 
parley  with  his  customer  ;  and  the  last  in  the  line 
sometimes  betrayed,  by  the  uneasiness  of  his 


MONEY  MADE         FEEDING  BEGGARS.  101 

limbs,  that  the  vulgar  saying  of  "the  d — 1  take 
the  hindmost,"  was  uppermost  in  his  thoughts. 

When  men  of  business  become  dependent  on 
borrowing,  to  meyt  their  engagements,  the  daily  ■ 
supply  becomes  as  necessary  as  daily  food.  The 
proverb  tells  us  that  a  hungry  man  will  break 
through  a  wall ;  and,  to  use  a  fashionable  phrase, 
of  some  who  do  not  understand  their  mother 
tongue,  the  cashiers  were  "au  fait"  in  this 
principle  of  natural  philosophy.  Their  eager 
eyes  scanned  with  solicitude  the  cadaverous  coun- 
tenances of  the  hungry  applicants,  to  see  where 
their  scanty  means  of  supply  might  be  most  pro- 
fitably applied,  and  when  occasionally,  some  one 
received  permission  to  call  again  when  the  press 
was  over,  hope  at  once  beamed  in  his  eye,  a  smile 
played  gently  about  his  mouth,  and  had  the  cash- 
ier been  a  lady,  he  would  have  fallen  on  her 
neck  and  kissed  her.  Punctual  to  the  hour,  he 
returns  and  receives  from  the  complacent  lips  of 
the  cashier,  the  joy-givng  intelligence — "  Mr.  A., 
we  have  so  great  a  |  ress  upon  us  just  now,  that 
we  find  it  impossible  to  meet  the  demand  for  dis- 
counts ;  but,  if  it  will  oblige  you,  I  will  take  your 
notes  at  seven  per  cent,  interest,  and  give  you  a 


102 


THE  DEATH-STRUGGLE. 


check  on  Mobile  at  sight,  and  at  par,  in  pay- 
ment." 

"But  I  do  not  know  what  to  do  with  it,"  says 
Mr.  A.  "  How  will  that  relieve  me  ?" 

"Well,  I  don't  know,  Mr.  A.,  but  I  have  un- 
derstood that  the  Waterworks  Bank  is  buying  at 
a  discount  of  five  per  cent.  That  is  rather  a 
large  sacrifice  to  make,  but  it  is  the  best  that  I 
can  propose." 

"  Hang  the  five  per  cent.,"  thought  A.  to  him- 
self, "it  will  cost  me  but  a  hundred  dollars,  and 
1  can  pay  my  note  f  and,  to  him,  a  day's  salva- 
tion from  bankruptcy,  was  an  age  of  happiness. 
The  proposal  was  eagerly  embraced,  and  while 
the  Waterworks  was  buying  the  checks  of  the 
Stork  on  Mobile,  Savannah,  Columbus,  &c.,  the 
Stork  was  buying  those  of  the  Waterworks  ;  and 
mischief-makers  have  reported  that  they  were  all 
exchanged  in  the  afternoon. 

Mr.  Eaves-dropper,  whose  name  implies  that 
he  attends  more  to  oth.er  people's  business  than 
his  own,  reports  having  overheard  the  following 
dialogue  between  the  cashiers,  at  their  afternoon 
meeting. 

Jack.    Well  Bob,  this  business  works  well 


A  BRACE  OF  JACK-ALLS. 


103 


yet,  I  have  pocketed  five  hundred  dollars, 
to-day. 

Bob.  Yes,  Jack,  sure,  and  it  works  well  at 
present  ;  but,  upon  me  soul,  I  don't  see  the  end 
of  it,  and  if  we  were  exposed,  we  should  make  a 
dangljng  appearance,  if  we  were  even  in  the 
ould  country. 

Jack.  Never  fear,  Bobby — a  man  never 
dangles  here,  as  long  as  he  has  got  money  ;  and 
besides,  the  dogs  dare  notwhisper  a  word  ;  their 
lives  depend  on  their  credit,  as  the  only  means 
of  supporting  them,  and  they  would  be  cut  up 
like  mutton-chops  in  the  market,  the  moment 
they  lisped  their  own  secret. — We  are  safe. 

Bob.  Troth  Jack,  you're  always  awake,  but 
I've  gone  so  deeply  already,  that  I  couldn't  pay 
a  draft  to  day  from  the  Secretary  at  Washing- 
ton, an'  if  it  were  not  for  that  brother  of  mine, 
with  the  Scotch  christian  name,  who  is  busy  at 
Washington,  hang  me  if  I  think  I  could  stand 
this. 

Jack.  Mr.  Cashier,  excuse  my  departure 
from  our  usual  friendly  familiarity,  but,  depend 
upon  it,  the  authorities  of  the  country  will  never 
oppress,  in  their  individual  circumstances,  those 


104  HOPES  AND  COMPLIMENTS 

«  / 

who  are  legitimately  engaged  in  support  of  their 
authority. 

Bob.  Arragh,  Jack  !  and  you're  compliment- 
ary—rbut  the  marquis  cares  nothing  about  yonr 
ragamuffin  authorities. 

Jack.  No  Bobby,  true,  but  he  cares  about 
your  dividends,  and  that  is  what  you  are  to 
take  care  of. 

Bob.  Sure  and  I'll  take  care  of  that,  by  the 
faith  of  me.  and  how  much  shall  we  make, 
Jack,  by  this  management  ? 

Jack.  Why  at  least  fifty  thousand  a  piece, 
if  nothing  occurs  till  the  excitement  is  over. 

Bob.  If  nothing  happens,  aye,  and  there's  the 
rub,  Jack.  I'm  afraid  you'll  bleed  some  of  the 
patients  to  death. 

Jack.  Never  mind,  Bob,  if  we  see  them  fairly 
gasping,  give  them  another  dose,  and  take  dou- 
ble fees  before  hand.  We  have  good  security 
for  the  past  already.    Good  evening  Bob. 

Bob.  Good  evening  to  ye  Jack.  Long  life  to 
ye.  And  when  ye  die,  may  ye  have  an  uncom- 
mon long  funeral.  And  as  Jack  departed,  he 
muttered,  "  and  ifthemye  murther  are  mourners, 
by  me  sowl  it  will  be  long  enough. 


A  PROBLEM. 


105 


These  things  may  be  all  slander,  but  still, 
there  arc  some  who  believe  that  a  bank,  which 
in  the  course  of  twelve  months,  divides  ten  per 
cent,  profit  to  its  stockholders,  and  accumulates 
a  nominal  surplus  of  twenty  per  cent,  more, 
could  never  have  done  it  by  loaning  money  at 
seven.  And  it  certainly  is  a  problem  in  arith- 
metic, which  requires  some  new  devise  of 
figures  to  solve. 

The  interest  of  description,  would  be  lost  in 
sameness  of  character,  should  I  attempt  to  de- 
scribe all  the  ways  in  which  the  dependent  bor- 
rowers are  made  the  chief  sufferers,  to  gratify  an 
undue  propensity  of  the  lenders  to  accumulate. 
And  I  will  only  add  what  is  well  known  here, 
as  a  warning  for  the  future  to  those  whose 
avarice  outruns  their  integrity,  that  these  banks, 
like  the  repentant  harlot,  have  long  since  "  wept 
by  the  willows,"  for  their  departure  from  their 
first  love;  and  the  only  thing  I  know  against 
their  present  government  or  officers  is,  that  the 
president  of  one  of  them,  in  paying  over  about 
one  hundred  and  fifty  millions  of  dollars,  was 
detected  by  general  Jackson  in  being  a  defaulter 
of  eleven  cents,  but  as  the  general  could  not  tell 


A  DEFAULTER. 


exactly  where  the  default  lay,  he  escaped  all 
other  punishment,  but  the  natural  one  of  being 
removed  from  his  office,  to  make  room  for  others  ; 
who,  if  they  were  in  default  at  all,  would  make 
it  sufficiently  palpable  to  avoid  the  necessity  of 
searching  out  these  contemptible  digits. 


CHAPTER  V. 

HISTORY  OF  A  DEFALCATION. 

On  meeting  my  friend  again  to  day,  I  was  as 
much  amused  as  ever  with  his  humor,  in  descri- 
bing a  public  defaulter.  And  as  he  makes  his 
own  reflections  upon  it,  I  will  without  farther 
preface  give  his  own  words,  as  near  as  I  can  re- 
collect. 

"  When  we  parted  yesterday"  said  he,  I  was 
speaking  of  defaulters.  The  history  of  a  public 
defalcation,  beginning  with  its  inception,  and 
carried  through  its  "rise  and  progress"  lo  a  final 
developement,  is  full  of  amusement  and  instruc- 
tion, and  if  more  thoroughly  understood,  the  pub- 
lic mind  would  be  disabused  of  its  prejudice 


PUBLIC  DEFAULTERS  HONEST  MEN.  107 


against  the  innocent  suthors  of  them.    A  public 
defaulter,  is  the  most  honest  man  in  the  world. 
If  any  other  proof  were  necessary,  there  is  abun- 
dance at  hand.  But  the  law  of  the  land  declares 
all  men  honest,  until  convicted  of  guilt,  and  its 
largus  eyes  would  surely  discover  the  truth,  if  it 
were  otherwise.     The  history  of  the  country 
gives  no  instance  of  a  defaulter  ever  being  tried, 
or  committed.    A  public  defaulter,  is  a  true  re- 
publican, an  advocate  and  supporter  of  the  peo- 
ple's rights,  who  scorn  to  be  controled  by  laws, 
not  of  their  own  choosing.    He  is  in  favor  of 
the  distribution  of  surplus  revenue,  and  he  takes 
the  best  and  shortest  method  to  accomplish  it. 
He  saves  congress  the  trouble  of  legislating  about 
it,  and  the  people  from  quarrelling  about  its  ap- 
propriation.   He  is  a  public  benefactor,  and  dis- 
tributes his  wealth  without  stint  to  the  poor, 
especially  if  they  have  a  vote  to  give ;  provides 
accommodations  for  public  meetings,  at  his  own 
expense,  is  a  leader  in  their  debates,  a  firm  sup- 
porter of  the  government,  a  liberal  supporter  of 
trade,  a  patron  of  the  arts  and  sciences,  and  a 
leader  in  fashion.    He  promotes  the  interests  of 
commerce,  and  sustains  stocks,  in  his  untiring 


108 


THE  TRUE  LIGHT. 


efforts  to  make  up  the  deficiencies,  which  his 
liberality  has  created,  and  when  he  has  done  all 
the  good  he  can  here,  he  goes  abroad  at  his  own 
cost  to  acquire  new  treasures  of  knowledge 
wherewith  to  benefit  his  countryman. 

The  baseness  of  ingratitude,  and  the  malice  of 
envy,  could  never  be  more  manifest,  than  in  the 
persecution  of  such  a  man.  Yet,  how  strange 
it  is  !  There  are  some  men  living,  who  do  not 
hesitate  to  heap  calumnies  on  his  head.  But  if 
we  go  strait  onward,  those  prejudices  will  soon 
be  done  away.  The  frequent  occurrence  of  de- 
fault in  this  age  proves  its  enlightened  character, 
and  that  intelligence  is  fast  dissipating  the  be- 
nighted superstitions  of  ignorance. 

The  people  of  Wall-street,  are  more  enlight- 
ened in  this  matter,  than  the  croaking  herd  of 
business  men,  and  property  owners  are,  who  are 
always  afraid  of  being  -taxed  to  make  up  defi- 
ciencies. They  regard  cuch  a  thing  as  the  hus- 
bandman does  the  rain  from  heaven,  watering 
the  parched  earth,  causing  verdure  and  blossoms 
to  spring  forth,  in  all  their  beauty,  and  timely 
fruit  to  satisfy  their  hungry  souls.  And  when 
the  wisdom  of  government  is  exercised,  in  the 


MORE  OF  DEFAULTS. 


109 


appointment  to  the  emoluments  of  office,  and  the 
care  of  public  monies,  of  one  of  their  true  friends, 
who  is  ready  to  sacrifice  every  thing,  even  his 
u  sacred  honor"  to  promote  their  success,  the 
event  is  hailed  with  little  less  than  a  bacchanalian 
triumph.  They  know  their  men,  and  they  know 
enough  of  human  nature  to  know,  that,  he  who 
has  once  been  a  stock  gambler,  will  be  again,  as 
soon  as  he  has  the  means  of  becoming  so.  And, 
although  they  may  have  plucked  him  to  his  last 
pin-feather,  and  then  left  him  exposed  to  the 
cold  frosts  of  a  world's  charity,  as  soon  as  his 
commission  is  in  his  pocket,  their  respect  and 
gratulations  know  no  bounds. 

A  public  default,  is  a  thing  which  seldom 
stands  by  itself.  There  are  many  inwoven  secrets, 
which  do  not  meet  the  public  gaze.  The  first 
stimulating  cause, — the  arts  to  prevent  disclo- 
sure, and  the  natural  sympathy  between  the 
friends  of  the  appointor,  and  appointed,  are  rarely 
scanned.  When  truth  bears  rule,  and  honest 
men  are  in  power,  the  checks,  and  balances  are 
such,  that  one  alone  would  not  long  maintain 
his  secret.  And  as  this  seldom  happens,  the  next 

point  of  wisdom  is,  when  disclosures  are  made; 

11 


110  JACK  DOWNING  IMPLICATED. 

so  to  arrange  matters,  that  the  crimes  of  all  may 
be  visited  on  the  head  of  but  one  ;  and  he,  instead 
of  suffering  by  the  unrelenting  knife,  and  having 
his  carcass  roasted  on  the  altar  of  sacrifice,  may, 
like  the  scape-goat  of  the  Mosaic  law,  be  turned 
into  the  wilderness,  to  bear  all  their  sins  beyond 
the  camp. 

I  cannot  better  describe  to  you,  the  beginning 
and  conduct  of  a  great  default,  than  by  reading 
a  detected  letter,  from  a  notable  correspondent 
of  general  Jackson's,  who,  from  his  great  per- 
sonal intimacy,  could  not  have  failed  to  know 
the  truth. 

Perhaps,  as  this  letter  somewhat  implicates, 
the  redoubtable  major  in  an  infidelity  to  the 
bank,  and  the  government,  should  it  ever  come 
to  his  notice,  he  may  insist  that  it  is  "Kounter- 
fit but  as  it  was  by  mistake,  inclosed  in  a  pack- 
age, and  directed  to  a  friend,  by  the  first  recipi- 
ent, when  he  was  leaving  in  haste,  I  have  no 
doubt  of  its  genuineness.  And  as  the  major's 
fortunes  are  known  to  have  risen  nearly  in  in- 
verse proportion  to  the  fall  of  the  bank,  and 
Apalache  lands,  even  his  friends  will  find  it  dif- 
ficult to  disbelieve  it.    Never  having  had  an  op- 


jack's  letter  to —  111 

portunity  to  return  this  letter,  I  make  it  public 
now,  that  justice  may  be  rendered  to  all  the 
parties, 

Washington,  1835. 

To  squire  $  

in  New- York. 
Dear  Sir.  Your  letter  to  the  ginral,  was  re- 
ceived in  Washington,  as  quick  as  the  mail 
could  fetch  it.  As  soon  as  it  got  to  the  P.  O. 
here,  Amos  Kindle  came  right  over  to  the  white 
house  with  it,  and  says  he— Ginral,  u  here's  a  let- 
ter from  York,  and  I  raither  guess — there's  some 
news  in  it.,J  As  soon  as  the  ginral  took  the  letter 
in  his  hand,  he  knowed  by  the  outside,  that  it 
was  from  you.  The  ginral  is  plaguey  cunnin, 
and  he  knowed  as  quick  as  a  weazle's  scent,  that 
Amos  wanted  to  find  out  what  was  in  it.  So, 
says  he  to  me,  major,  says  he,  these  ere  friends 
of  Mr.  Van  Buren  in  York,  pester  me  amazinly* 
And  then  he  laid  the  letter  down  on  the  table, 
and  lit  his  pipe,  and  went  to  talkin  politics.  And 
it  warnt  long  afore  he  drove  Amos  away,  by 
tellin  a  story  about  a  man,  who  turned  traitor  to 
his  patron.     The  ginral  all  the  time  meant 


112  GENERAL  JACKSON  "  1ULED." 

Mc  Lane  and  him,  but  he  told  the  story  so  cute- 
ly, that  it  suited  Kindle  and  Clay,  just  as  well. 
As  soon  as  Amos  was  gone,  says  the  ginral  to 
me,  says  he,  "  Major" — now  we'll  read  this  ere 
letter  fromSwartwout.  That  Kindle,  "says  he," 
wanted  mightily  to  know  what  was  in  it,  but 
though  he's  sharp  as  a  needle,,  it  wont  do  to  trust 
him  with  secrets^  unless  he  has  a  hand  in  mak- 
ing on  em  f  and  then  we  read  your  letter  all  over> 
backwards,  and  forwards,  side  ways,  and  cross 
ways.  And  when  we  got  through,  says  the  gin- 
ral to  me,  says  he,  "  Major,  this  ere  letter  is  amazin 
puzlin." 

He  was  considerable  riled ;  and  says  he,  major, 
this  looks  mighty  like  your  game  of  hocus  pocus, 
that  you  larnt  me  to  play  with  the  cups  and 
balls.  What  does  Swartwout  mean  by  being 
flunked?  Why  says  I,  that's  a  Wall-street  word, 
and  means  that  he  has  been  outwitted,  in  tryin 
to  make  up  the  money  he  was  behind.  And  the 
ginral  riz  right  up,  and  says  he,  major,  I 
knowed  Swartwout  in  New  Orleans,  in  Burr's 
time,  and  I  know  he'd  stand  a  shot  with  every 
one  of  them  fellows  in  Wall-street,  as  quick  as 
he'd  wink,  if  they  tried  to  play  hocus  pocus  with 


HIS  PASSION — AND  OPINIONS.  113 

him,  so  dont  tell  me  any  more  of  your  stories, 
major,  and  as  you  know,  says  he,  that  to-morrow 
morning  I'm  off  to  the  rip  raps,  you  must  send 
Swartwout  an  answer,  but  remember,  for  by  the 
Eternal,*  and  then  he  ketched  off  his  specks 
with  one  hand,  and  he  smashed  the  other  hand 
down  on  to  the  table  so,  he  broke  his  pipe  in 
ten  thousand  shivers,  and  his  eyes  looked  like 
coals  of  fire,  and  I  looked  round  to  see  if  the 
door  was  open,  and  just  then  Woodbury  came  in, 
and  the  ginral,  was  quiet  as  a  lamb  in  a  minit. 
But  I  warnt  in  sorts  to  talk  about  the  treasury 
then,  so  I  went  to  bed,  and  the  ginral  he  was  off 
afore  day-light  this  mornin.. 

The  ginral  always  said  you  did  right  in  payin 
for  printin  things  agin  Biddle  and  the  bank — 
because  says  he — as  you  say  major,  what  is  sass 
for  goose,  is  sass  for  gander,  and  the  only  dis- 
counts, I've  lately  heard  tell  on  by  the  bank,  is  to 
pay  for  printin  things  &gin  us.    When  he  was 


*  The  secret  of  the  major's  disgrace  at  "Washington,  has 
never  been  publicly  known.  But  this  passage  \  of  his  letter, 
taken  with  the  results  of  his  subsequent  advice  to  the  defaulter, 
and  his  almost  immediate  discharge  from  employment  after- 
wards, leave  little  doubt  as  to  the  cause, 

11* 


114     JACK  AT  THE  BOTTOM  OF  THE  MISCHIEF. 

in  York,  he  was  a  good  deal  consarned  to  know 
that  you  had  been  obliged  to  take  money,  that 
ought  to  gone  into  the  treasury.  And  I  raly  be- 
lieve, if  it  had'nt  been  for  that,  he  never  would 
have  moved  the  deposites,  without  Congress  to 
back  him.  But  when  I  telPd  him  that  you  could 
make  it  all  up?  and  three  times  over  by  specula- 
tion on  the  money,  he  was  as  chipper  as  a  bird, 
and  says  he)  major ',  seein  as  the  deposites  are 
moved,  we  can  play  them  double  game. 

In  respect  of  the  loss  you  made,  by  the  bank 
stock,  that  I  recommended  you  to  buy  of  my 
cousin  Zekiel  Bigelow,  in  Wall-street,  I  did'nt 
tell  the  ginral  any  thing,  because  the  deposites 
bein  moved  that  proved  a  bad  spickilation.  But 
in  respect  of  the  Apalachi  land  co.,  I  advise  you 
to  vest  more  largely,  for  the  ginral  says,  that  if  I 
think  best,  he'll  establish  a  knavy  depo  there, 
and  then  it  will  be  worth  double. 

J.  Downing,  major 

2nd  brigade. 

It  is  proper  to  observe  here,  that  the  major  was 
the  owner  of  the  stock  above  alluded  to,  as  sold 
by  his  cousin,  and  that  he  was  also  a  director 


CAUSE  OF  JACK'S  DISGRACE.  115 


and  proprietor  in  the  Apalachi  land  company. 
He  was  never  publicly  accused  of  being  either  a 
coward  or  janus  faced,  but  his  confession  in  this 
letter,  with  the  unraveling  it  gives  to  the  de- 
fault, lays  him  open  to  the  charge  of  both  ;  for 
it  seems  that,  while  he  was  professedly  the  firm 
supporter  of  the  bank,  he  was  speculating  on  its 
stock,  based  on  the  expected  removal  of  the  de- 
posites.  And  while  the  defaulter  was  consult- 
ing with  his  patron,  how  to  get  out  of  a  dilemma, 
into  which  his  personal  devotion  had  led  him? 
he  was  "flunked"  by  the  major,  his  patron's 
confidential  adviser,  in  a  "  spickilation"  which 
he  had  recommended  to  him  as  a  means  of  relief, 
which  made  his  situation  much  worse.  And 
when  we  consider,  that  these  things  were  done 
in  the  face  of  general  Jackson,  who  was  deeply 
interested,  and  his  most  devoted  friend,  we  can- 
not wonder  that  the  major  looked  round  to  see 
if  the  door  was  open,  nor  that  he  was  shortly  af- 
terwards relieved  from  his  high  responsibilities, 
Although  the  characters  of  public  men,  are 
public  property,  they  should  not  be  sported  with, 
too  rudely,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped,  that  for  the 


116 


KON  PLUS;D. 


honor  of  the  major's  past  reputation,  he  wiil  be 
able  to  clear  his  skirts  of  this. 

When  the  defaulter  found  himself  deceived  by 
the  major,  and  his  Wall-street  operations  all  go- 
ing' against  him,  and  he  thereby  involved  in  still 
greater  pecuniary  embarrassment,  his  soldier  like 
spirit  was  roused  within  him,  and  as  the  general 
said,  he  would  have  "  stood  a  shot  with  every 
man  in  the  street,  if  that  would  have  relieved 
him  from  his  difficulties."  But  he  had  been  long 
enough  there,  to  know  that  cold  lead,  although 
the  heaviest  of  metals,  was  in  fact  but  the  lightest 
kind  of  argument,  and  his  discretion,  the  better 
part  of  his  valour,  discovered  to  him,  that  if, 
among  them  all  he  should  chance  to  meet  a 
good  shot,  and  himself  receive  a  quietus,  it  would 
establish  no  truth  but  that  of  his  real  condition, 
and  default.    When  this  truth  stared  him  in  the 
face,  he  is  said  to  have  uttered  horrid  impreca- 
tions, and  with  alternating  curses  and  relenting, 
to  have  bewailed  his  fidelity  to  his  long  loved 
friend  and  companion  in  arms,  the  general. 

Not  that  the  general,  ever  prompted  him  to 
such  acts ;  they  were  volunteered  by  himself, 
out  of  pure  love,  from  old  companionship,  and 


A  GOOD  FINANCIER. 


117 


he  never  thought  of  the  wrong,  much  less  of  his 
inability,  to  pay  his  expenditures,  until  the  fatal 
truth  was  pushed  upon  his  notice.  How  could 
he  think  of  such  a  thing,  when  money  was  flow- 
ing through  his  hands,  like  water  through  a 
mill-race  ?  how  could  he  tell  that  there  would 
be  a  balance  against  him  ?  he  had  never  kept 
an  account  in  his  life,  nor  even  examined  one. 
He  was  too  liberal  to  be  exact.  When  his  shoe- 
maker presented  his  bill,  he  looked  at  the  foot ; 
and  if  money  was  in  his  pocket  he  paid  it,  and  if 
not,  he  kicked  the  impudent  fellow  out  of  the 
house,  if  he  presumed  to  urge  his  suit,  by  any 
word  of  expostulation,  or  plea  of  necessity.  It 
was  unsoldier-like,  and  ungentlemanly  to  be  ex- 
act in  any  thing,  but  the  point  of  honor,  viz. — if 
a  man  should  say  his  coat  was  brown,  when  he 
knew  it  was  black,  call  him  out,  and  settle  the 
truth  by  an  exchange  of  shots. 

And  here  I  cannot  forbear  the  remark,  that, 
when  government  wants  soldiers,  they  should 
look  for  fighting  men.  When  they  want  judges 
and  attornies,  they  should  seek  for  those  learned 
in  the  law,  and  when  they  want  some  one  to 
take  charge  of  financial  affairs,  they  should  seek 


118 


IN  A  DEEP  STUDY. 


those  whose  habits  of  exactness,  promptitude, 
and  experience  in  finance,  give  them  some  fit- 
ness for  the  duty. 

f  But  the  die  was  now  cast  with  the  defaulter, 
and  no  repentance  could  make  atonement  to  of- 
fended justice.  Thus  far,  his  attempts  to  relieve 
himself  from  the  first  deficiency,  had  not  only 
been  unavailing/but  had  led  him  deeper  into  dif- 
ficulty. Something  more  must  be  done,  or  the 
fatal  hour  of  disclosure  must  come.  The  general 
would  soon  lose  all  patience,  as  well  as  all  confi- 
dence. Should  he  implicate  him,  and  clear  his 
own  skirts  ?  No — that  thought  was  too  repugnant 
to  his  honorable  feelings,  it  would  be  unjust,  for 
if  the  general  knew  his  default,  he  had  no  hand 
in  creating  it,  and  if,  he  allowed  him  time  to  es- 
cape its  consequences  by  retrieving  it,  it  was  the 
kindliness  resulting  from  old  associations.  It 
was  his  own  want  of  prudence  in  the  first  place5 
and  of  skill  in  the  second,  that  placed  him  where 
he  was.  But  something  more  must  be  done. 
And  what  should  he  do  ?  The  finale  of  his 
Apalachi  land  stock,  was  not  yet  realised  ;  he 
thought  well  of  it — he  thought  well  of  all  land 
speculations.    Yes5  the  landed  interest^  must,  in 


RESOLVES — AND  GOES  AHEAD.  119 


this  country,  as  in  every  other,  in  time,  become 
the  wealthiest-— cities  were  springing  up  every 
day — fortunes  were  made  in  a  moment— there 
could  be  no  loss — the  land  would  not  run  away — 
the  Wall-street  sharpers  could  not  "  flunk"  him 
there.    Yes,  he'd  try  a  land  speculation,  east  and 
west — honest  man  ! — he  never  thought  how 
much  easier  it  was  for  one  of  these  land  lopers, 
to  make  a  city  in  the  woods  on  paper,  than  to 
be  at  the  trouble  of  cutting  the  timber  all  down, 
and  building  it  up  again  into  houses,  stores, 
churches,  and  academies.     And  that  even  a 
flowing  river  with  beautiful  falls,  and  "  mill 
privileges."  with  fertile  valleys  skirting  its  chrys- 
tal  waters,  could  be  made,  wrhere  nature  had 
never  taken  that  trouble,  in  a  thousandth  part  of 
the  time  that  De  Witt  Clinton  could  make  a 
sluggish  canal.    In  short  he  wanted  the  expe- 
rience, which  has  proved  these  Yankee  land 
speculators  to  be  the  genuine  breed  of  land- 
sharks,  which  sailors  so  much  detest  for  their 
cunning,  and  voracious  propensities,  and  who, 
to  use  one  of  their  own  descriptions  of  them- 
selves— "  are  as  much  sharper,  than  a  Wall-street 
sharper,  as  a  Wall-street  sharper,  is  sharper  than 


120 


ANECDOTE. 


a  needle."  Bat  the  decision  once  made  by  the 
defaulter,  his  practice  was  to  go  ahead,  and  he 
usually  left  out  the  preliminary  of  the  renowned 
Crocket,  as  implying  a  disagreeable  necessity.  If 
he  was  not  wrongs  he  must  be  right)  was  the 
result  of  his  logical  reasoning;  and  certainly,  no 
more  self-evident  conclusion  was  ever  drawn 
from  premises. 

With  the  accuracy  of  judgment,  therefore, 
which  might  be  expected  in  such  a  case,  he 
bought  lands,  to  a  very  large  extent,  in  various 
sections  of  the  country,  along  with  the  most  re- 
spectable companies,  and  from  the  handsomest 
drawn  maps  he  could  find. 

An  anecdote  occurred  about  this  time,  which  I 
believe  has  once  got  into  the  newspapers,  but  it 
is  too  good  not  to  be  repeated  here,  especially,  as 
it  will  show  to  future  generations,  the  value  of  a 
clean  and  handsomely  drawn  map — in  other 
words,  that  it  is  better  to  do  things  well,  than  to 
do  them  clumsily. 

The  defaulter  had  in  his  possession,  a  title  to 
an  old  soldier's  patent,  the  papers  of  which  had 
been  carried  in  a  dirty  pocket  book,  and  handled 
with  dirty  hands,  until  the  location  of  the  patent 


1 


A  YANKEE.  121 

could  hardly  be  distinguished  on  the  map.  It 
had  been  u  thrown  in  to  him,"  to  bind  a  bargain 
with  some  speculators,  much  the  same  as  a 
huckster  woman  puts  on  to  the  measure  too 
peaches  more,  when  she  sees  her  customer  about 
to  depart.  He  esteemed  it  of  very  little  value, 
and  thought  no  more  of  it,  until  one  day  a  stal- 
wart Yankee,  with  slouched  hat,  came  into  his 
office,  and,  says  he,  "  mister  hain't  you  got  a 
piece  of  land  there  in  Miss-soori,  up  on  the  Black 
river.  Yes,  was  the  reply,  after  a  moment's  re- 
flection." 

"  Well  mister,  what  will  you  take  now,  for  that 
are  land  ?" 

The  defaulter,  who  had  begun  to  understand, 
a  little  of  the  mode  of  bargaining  practiced  by 
these  men,  answered  "a  thousand  dollars," though 
he  would  have  accepted  five  hundred. 

"  Did  you  say  a  thousand  dollars,  mister  ?" 

"  Yes." 

"  That's  raither  high.  Jest  let  me  see  them  are 
papers,  mister." 

The  papers  were  handed  to  him,  and,  after 

being  critically  examined,  and  found  to  be  all 

right,  the  Yankee,  still  holding  on  to  the  papers, 

12 


122 


COME  OVER  BY  A  YANKEE, 


from  fear  of  not  being  able  to  bind  his  bargain 
otherwise,  asked— 

"  Won't  you  take  no  less,  Mister  ¥ 

«  No." 

"  Well,  I'll  take  it,  just  make  me  the  title." 

The  title  was  made  out,  and  the  money  paid, 
when  the  defaulter,  surprised  at  the  bargain, 
asked,  "  what  did  you  buy  that  land  at  such  a 
price  for  ?  I  would  have  sold  it  to  you  for  half 
the  money." 

«  Why,"  said  the  Yankee,  "  there's  a  darned 
good  lead  mine  on  it." 

"  There  is,  eh  ! — how  much  is  it  worth  ? 

"  Well,  I  don't  know,  but  I've  dug  out  ten 
thousand  dollar's  worth  a'ready,  and  I  expect  to 
get  a  great  deal  more." 

"  The  d— 1  you  do  ?" 

"  Yes — good  bye,  Squire." 

Report  says  that  this  was  the  only  valuable 
piece  of  land  the  defaulter  ever  bought,  and  that 
this  was  all  the  money  he  ever  got  back  again, 
from  all  his  investments.  I  have  even  heard  it 
whispered  that  this  same  Yankee  was  one  of 
the  speculators  concerned  in  making  the  large 
sale  to  him,  in  the  first  place,  and  that  the 


DOCTRINE  OP  CHANCES. 


123 


u  throwing  it  in,"  was  but  the  cast  of  a  die,  to 
bind  a  profitable  bargain,  trusting  to  their  in- 
genuity to  get  it  back  again  ;  and,  having 
cheated  him  at  any  rate,  whether  they  should 
get  it  again,  or  not. 

A  mind  as  cool,  even,  as  the  defaulter's, 
could  hardly  retain  its  just  balance,  under  such 
accumulations  of  misfortune,  and  accordingly, 
we  find  him  sometimes  afflicted  with  gloomy 
forebodings  of  the  future,  sometimes  brooding 
over  the  disappointments  of  the  past  ;  and  al- 
ways taking  that  course  that  will  lead  him  deeper 
into  difficulty. 

Whether  it  is  right  or  prudent  for  a  man  in- 
volved in  embarrasment  to  attempt  to  relieve 
himself  by  a  single  coup  de  main,  maybe  a  very 
fruitful  theme  for  those  who  like  to  calculate 
the  doctrine  of  chances;  but,  in  my  opinion,  a 
chance,  which  may  be  operated  upon  in  so  ma- 
ny ways,  as  may  the  rise  or  fall  of  property,  or 
the  success  of  speculation  of  any  kind — and,  in- 
stead of  being  governed  by  any  such  natural 
laws  as  may  be  supposed  to  belong  to  chance, 
wherein  the  aggregate  results  must  be  always 
the  same,  although  we  do  not  know  before  hand 


124 


TRUE    SECRET  OF  SUCCESS. 


how  they  will  come  up  particularly,  is  over- 
ruled and  affected,  more  or  less,  by  the  changing 
opinions  and  volition  of  almost  every  one  in  the 
community — deserves  not  the  name,  even  of 
chance,  and,  in  my  opinion,  involves  *the  cer- 
tainty and  necessity  of  failure.  And, 
although  such  a  thing  hath  been  as  success 
in  this  way,  yet  all  my  experience  goes 
to  show  me,  that  the  "  chance,"  so  called, 
is  not  as  one  in  the  hundred.  The  fact 
that  a  man  is  embarrassed  signifies,  also,  that  he 
is  unable  to  control  his  affairs,  and,  if  he  cannot 
control  them  in  the  state  they  are,  their  expan- 
sion, out  of  his  legitimate  course,  will  not  help 
him  much.  I  believe  every  successful  man  will 
tell  me,  that  the  secret  of  his  success  has  been, 
the  preserving  this  ability  to  himself ;  and  my 
own  experience  has  shown  me,  that  whenever 
the  case  is  otherwise,  one  not  only  has  the  ca- 
prices of  chance  against  him,  but  the  caprices, 
cupidity,  and  contrary  interests  of  his  fellow 
men,  to  contend  with,  and  the  sooner  he  comes 
to  a  stand,  the  better  for  himself,  and  his  friends- 
These  reflections  are  not  suggested  by  a  default, 
when  viewed  in  any  other  light,  than  as  a  pecu- 


DEFAULTER  IN  DESPAIR. 


125 


niary  embarrasment ;  and,  in  this  particular, 
they  are  alike  applicable  to  all  embarrassed 
men. 

When  men,  for  insufficient  reasons,  have 
raised  their  hopes  too  high,  their  disappointment 
commonly  brings  with  it  a  corresponding  de- 
pression ;  and  so  with  the  defaulter — he  now  des- 
paired. But  let  me  not  be  understood  that  des- 
pair took  away  his  appetite  ;  far  otherwise — - 
there  was  no  sickliness  in  h»s  despair.  He  merely 
gave  up  all  hope  of  being  able  to  save  himself 
from  that  very  small  modicum  of  attainture  to 
his  honor,  which  is  comprehended  in  the  name 
of  a  defaulter  ;  and,  as  despair,  in  all  its  shapes 
and  degrees,  is  always  rash  and  unreasonable,  he 
is  said  to  have  given  himself  up  to  an  unaccount- 
able fondness  for  those  fashionable,  yet  too  ani- 
mating amusements,  where  gentlemen  are  sup- 
posed to  stake  largely.  Here  he  met  many  plea- 
sant companions,  but  among  them,  one  particu- 
larly, a  public  functionary,  who,  although  he  had 
met  him  every  day  foryears,  in  his  attention  to  the 
duties  of  his  office,  he  never  before  esteemed  his 
acquaintance  to  be  a  jewel  of  such  Price  and  value 
as  he  now  found  it  to  be.  An  intimacy  of  course 


126 


FINDS  A  FRIEND. 


grew  up,  which  led  to  the  denouement  that 
must  form  the  conclusion  to  this  chapter. 

This  friend  of  great  Price  had  every  requisite 
of  character  for  a  gentleman.  He  would  eat 
heavy,  drink  deep,  and  play  high,  and  not  the 
least  of  his  accomplishments  was,  that  he  had  no 
respect,  whatever,  for  the  character  of  Joseph,  as 
claimed  by  the  Hebrews.  To  add  to  his  value,  as 
a  friend,  these  excellent  qualities  were  made  more 
seductive,  by  an  agreeable  exterior,  and  manner. 
He  was  also  a  man  of  business  withal,  and  never 
gave  more  than  an  occasional  hour  of  relaxation, 
to  those  refined  pleasures. 

As  they  chatted,  and  talked,  and  drank  toge- 
ther, the  defaulter  sometimes  looked  at  him  with 
unmingled  pleasure,  sometimes  with  feelings 
-  akin  to  envy.  What  would  he  not  give  to  pos- 
sess the  quiet  and  unruffled  mind  and  temper  of 
his  friend  ?  to  be  as  free  from  any  danger  of 
exposure — from  the  haunting,  disturbing  influ- 
ence of  self  accusation.  Alas  !  the  first  step 
from  the  path  of  duty  inevitably  leads  to  ruin, 
unless  immediately  retraced. 

Sometimes  the  thought  would  arise  in  his 
mind,  "Is  it  possible  that,  like  myself,  he  comes 


BOTH  IN  THE  SAME  BOX. 


127 


here  as  a  relief  to  his  burthened  spirit? — to 
seek  a  solace  for  the  cares  of  an  anxious  mind  ! 
he  banished  the  thought  at  once  ;  but  who  is 
there  that  has  not  often  found  these  random 
suggestions  of  thought  were  in  fact  the  premoni- 
tions of  truth  ? — and  to  this  fact  we  are  about  to 
come. 

One  night,  when  the  stakes  had  run  high,  and 
were  swept  by  their  opponents,  and  the  two 
frisnds  had  set  themselves  down  to  the  solace  of 
their  wine ;  and  its  inspiring  qualities  had  height- 
ened into  extacy  the  love  that  glowed  in  the 
bosom  of  each,  with  that  mellow  frankness  which 
wine  always  inspires,  and  the  longing  which 
friendship  always  feels,  to  make  its  loved  object 
the  copartner  of  its  cares,  the  defaulter  whispered 
in  the  softest  accents,  "  Bill,  I  am  ruined — the 
money  I  lost  belongs  to  the  Treasury." 

11  So  did  mine  !"  was  the  full  and  sonorous 
response. 

Had  the  thunder-bolt,  which  Abdiel  let  fall  on 
the  crest  of  Satan,  struck  the  defaulter,  he  could 
scarcely  have  received  a  greater  shock,  and  al- 
most like  the  arch-fiend — 


/ 


128         THEY  TAKE  COUNSEL  TOGETHER* 

Ten  paces  huge  he  back  recoiled  ; 
The  tenth  on  bended  knee. 

But,  recovered  in  some  degree  from  the  shock, 
the  friends  were  both  astonished  at  their  own  im- 
prudence, and,  shaking  hands,  they  separated 
for  the  night  ;  the  one  to  go  home  and  ponder 
his  lot, the  other  to  regret, his  folly. 

But  the  disclosure  had  been  too  mutual  to  rest 
here — something  mnst  be  done  for  their  protec- 
tion. It  could  only  be  done  by  concert,  for  each 
had  the  power  to  ruin  the  other,  any  moment  ; 
and,  as  a  result  of  this  necessity,  it  was  the  part 
of  wisdom  to  extend  their  mutual  confidence. 
If  both  could  not  be  saved,  one  of  them  might. 
The  government  was  passing  into  new  hands, 
new  interests  would  arise  out  of  it,  new  applica- 
tions would  be  made  for  office— perhaps  they 
would  both  lose  theirs.  If  they  did  not  render 
their  accounts  promptly,  they  would  be  suspect- 
ed, and  lose  their  offices  of  course.  They  must, 
therefore,  work  speedily. 

But  the  day  of  retribution  always  comes 
sooner  than  we  expect.  The  government  had 
changed  hands — new  interests  had  arisen — new 
applications  for  office  had  been  made.  They 


THEY  ABSQUATULATE* 


109 


had  become  more  than  suspected,  before  they 
could  possibly  arrange,  out  of  the  chaos  of  their 
affairs,  and  the  wilderness  of  their  crimes,  any 
such  jumbled  up  accounts  of  interchanged  re- 
ceipts, costs,  &c.  &c,  as  could  save  even  one  of 
them.  And,  as  a  consequence  upon  the  unfaith- 
fulness of  their  friendship,  they  were  both  com- 
pelled to  fly  in  disguise  and  disgrace,  from  the 
presence  of  their  countrymen,  and  from  the  joys 
of  home. 

And  now,  if  I  have  not  given  a  true  account 
of  a  default  which  cost  the  government  more 
than  a  million  of  dollars,  solely  in  consequence 
of  afejw  thousands  wrongfully  spent  in  the  first 
place,  for  electioneering  purposes — if  this  ac- 
count does  not  prove  the  total  unfitness  of  gam- 
bling politicians  to  hold  offices  of  trust — and  if 
these  circumstances  will  not  apply  in  more  quar- 
ters than  one,  public  and  private — it  is  because 
my  powers  of  description  are  feeble,  and  not  be- 
cause the  truth  is  wanting  to  establish  these  facts. 


130 


CHAPTER  VI. 

SHOWING  WHAT  A  PANIC   IS — ITS  CAUSES — ITS 
BEGINNIIVG — ITS     ADVANTAGES,     AND  ITS 

CONSEQUENCES.  WITH       THE  AUTHOR'S 

LEAVE-TAKING. 

A  panic  is  one  of  those  things  in  nature,  which 
have  existence  without  entity — something  which 
may  be  felt,  but  can  neither  be  traced  nor  follow- 
ed. It  has  the  power  of  motion  and  flight  ex- 
ceeding that  of  all  cognoscible  beings — for  it  can 
pass  from  city  to  city,  on  the  wings  of  a  single 
rumor.  It  has  the  power  of  making  itself  invi- 
sible, and  can  stalk  through  the  streets  in  the 
day  time  unseen,  frightening  every  body  by  its 
presence.  It  has  the  advantage  of  Archimedes' 
lever,  for  it  has  a  fulcrum  in  the  credulity  of  the 
man  ;  and  you  may  easily  turn  the  world  upside 
down  with  it.  It  is,  in  fact,  a  kind  of  moral  ele- 
ment, and,  like  the  fire,  a  single  spark  may  kindle 


A  PANIC — WHAT  IS  IT  ? 


131 


into  a  conflagration,  which  the  whole  nation 
cannot  extinguish  ;  and  it  must  be  left  to  go  out 
of  itself,  when  it  has  no  more  fuel  to  nourish  it, 
It  may  be  called  forth  by  a  whisper,  but  a  multi- 
tude cannot  bind  it.  It  is,  therefore,  one  of 
the  most  important  of  agents,  but  like  fire  also 
it  is  dangerous  to  handle.  It  is  a  very  good  ser- 
vant, but  a  very  hard  master,  and  sometimes 
consumes  those  who  kindle  it. 

The  causes  of  panic,  must  not  be  sought  for 
among  natural  phenomena — no  science  of  alchy- 
my  is  necessary  to  compound  it.  It  may  be 
made  up  of  truth,  composed  of  falsehood,  or  com- 
bined from  both.  It  may  be  produced  by  hatred, 
jealousy,  or  envy.  It  may  arise  from  curiosity, 
or  the  love  of  the  marvellous,  or,  from  a  more 
villainous  cause  still,  the  desire  to  profit  by  its  ef-  . 
fects.  And  with  this  knowledge  of  its  causes,  if 
men  were  wise,  they  would  give  less  heed  to  it. 

The  beginning  of  a  panic  in  a  small  country 
town,  is  usually  indicated  by  the  doctor's  riding 
through  the  village,  without  stopping  to  recog- 
nise his  acquaintance,  or  an  old  woman  hastily 
putting  on  her  shawl,  to  run  across  the  street  to 
her  neighbors. 


A  PANIC  IN  THE  COUNTRY.  132 

What  could  it  be  for?  says  one.  - 
Sure  enough  what  could  it  be  for?  says  an- 
other. 

Dont  you  think  there  is  some  bad  disease 
about?  says  a  third,  and  before  long,  the  interro- 
gatory assumes  the  shape  of  a  declaration,  and 
if  not  explained,  and  in  less  than  a  week,  half  the 
people  of  the  town  are  sick,  through  fear  that 
they  may  be  worse. 

What  is  Mrs.  Toddle  running  about  the  street 
for?  says  one. 

I  expect  she  has  gone  to  enquire  about  the 
school  mistress.    Says  another. 

I  expect  the  school  mistress  will  run  away- 
with  that  fellow  yet,  says  a  third,  (she  ran  away 
once  herself.)  And  before  the  week  is  out,  the 
•  whole  neighborhood  is  in  a  panic,  for  fear  the 
school  mistress  should  run  away,  and  their  dear 
daughters  be  corrupted,  by  her  example — while 
the  innocent  subject  of  their  fears  is  attending 
to  her  duties,  all  unconscious  of  the  commotion 
she  has  occasioned. 

In  great  commercial  cities,  a  panic  is  a  differ-* 
ent  thing,  and  first  indicates  its  approach  in  a 
different  way.    The  subjects  to  which  it  gene- 


PANICS  AND  PANIC  MAKERS.  133 

rally  points,  are  politics,  and  money,  chiefly  the 
latter,  and  never  the  first,  except  as  it  may 
have  a  bearing  on  the  last.  Like  great  and  pes- 
tilent diseases,  it  generally  has  premonitory 
symptoms,  which  commonly  exhibit  themselves 
in  plethora,  and  a  wasteful  indulgence  in  luxury. 
And  like  those  diseases  also,  it  never  attacks  or 
alarms  those  of  regular  habits,  and  an  equal 
mode  of  living.  In  the  city  there  are  regular 
panic  makers  1  some  of  them  work  on  their  own 
account,  as  Donald  said  he  fought,  when  it  was 
found  that  he  had  killed  more  of  his  own  clan, 
than  of  their  enemies — and  some  of  them  work 
for  hire,  as  the  penny-a-liners  do,  in  fabricating 
marvellous  stories  ;  and  hence  the  opportunity 
and  inducement  for  making  panics  in  the  city, 
far  exceed  those  in  the  country. 

Political  panics,  and  money  panics,  are  like 
electric  bodies,  one  is  positively  charged,  the 
other  negatively,  and  the  effect  of  this  kind  is, 
that  when  they  approach  each  other,  they  pro- 
duce an  explosion,  like  the  breaking  of  the 
Banks,  &c.  These  are  properly  termed  com- 
pound.   A  simple  panic  is  more  harmless,  and 

-  like  the  Simoon,  if  a  man  can  stand  still,  and 

13 


134  NATURAL  PANICS  A  RUSH. 

hold  his  breath,  it  will  pass  by  without  harming 
him. 

There  is  also  another  kind,  called  natural 
panics.  These  are  such  as  sometimes  happen  in 
churches,  theatres,  &c — and,  although  they  have 
nothing  to  do  with  the  subject  about  which  I 
am  writing,  yet  a  description  of  one  of  them 
may  aptly  illustrate  the  reasonableness  of  the 
others. 

When  I  was  a  young  man,  I  went  to  a  popu- 
lar lecture  in  an  old  wooden  church,  which  was 
very  much  crowded.  During  the  service,  as  it 
appeared  afterwards,  some  boys  without,  threw 
a  handful  of  small  gravel  stones  against  the 
clap-boarding  of  the  house,  which  made  such  a 
rattling,  that  a  general  rush  took  place,  and  the 
church  was  tenantless  in  less  than  a  minute. 
Imagination  pictured  to  some  the  tumbling 
walls.  The  noise  of  the  rush,  stunned  every 
one.  Some  smashed  the  windows,  and  leaped  to 
the  ground,  others,  and  some  of  them  females, 
impatient  to  reach  the  door,  and  as  they  supposed 
a  place  of  greater  safety,  strode  over  the  heads  of 
the  dense  crowd,  making  the  most  grotesque 
figures  imaginable.   Some  were  trodden  down, 


A  MONEY  PANIC. 


135 


but  none  were  killed ;  and  when  all  were  safely 
out,  with  the  exception  of  crushed  hats,  torn 
shirts,  sore  bones,  and  lost  reticules,  the  enquiry 
began  to  be  made,  what  has  happened?  I  don't 
know  says  one.  Did  you  see  any  thing  ?  asked 
another  ?  No — did  you?  No — Nor  I,  said  a  fourth, 
and  a  fifth — and  when  all  were  satisfied  that  noth- 
ing had  really  happened,  except  a  fright,  they 
began,  one  by  one,  to  approach  the  house  again, 
and  cautiously  peeping  in  at  the  door,  lest  the 
walls  might  suddenly  tumble  about  their  heads, 
they  saw  the  light  burning  brightly,  and  the 
honest  clergyman  sitting  in  his  desk,  the  only 
man  in  the  house,  convulsed  with  laughter,  at 
the  fright  of  his  late  audience. 

And  so,  when  a  panic  comes  in  Wall-street,  if 
any  man  will  take  a  position,  a  little  above  the 
heads  of  the  multitude,  where  he  can  see  their 
folly,  he  may  safely  enjoy  a  hearty  laugh,  in- 
stead of  suffering  a  fright. 

A  money  panic,  in  the  city,  sometimes  begins 
with  a  mere  question  of  doubt,  as,  what  do  you 
think  of  the  condition  of  the  banks?  and  this 
question,  handed  from  one  to  another,  assumes 
new  shapes,  and  gathers  strength  and  importance 


136 


HOW  IT  WORKS. 


as  it  flies.  Sometimes,  it  begins  with  a  rattling 
noise,  like  the  movement  of  specie,  upon  which 
the  panic  makers  immediately  conjure  up  the 
ghost  of  an  earthquake,  that  is  about  to  take 
place.  Sometimes  it  is  the  price  asked,  or  the 
refusal  of  a  broker  to  buy  a  foreign  bank  note, 
for  which  he  has  no  current  money  to  give 
in  exchange,  which  runs  from  mouth  to  mouth, 
and  from  hand  to  hand,  until  half  the  people  in 
the  town  think  their  bank  notes  are  worthless  ; 
and  they  will  put  them  off  for  apothecary's  phy- 
sic, rather  than  keep  them.  And  sometimes  it 
is  the  mere  sympathy  of  suspicion,  when  every 
man  suspects  his  neighbor  to  be  in  possession  of 
some  secret,  which  he  is  not.  And  all,  or  any 
one  of  these  causes,  is  sufficient  to  make  three 
fourths  of  the  population  of  the  town  tumble 
over  each  other  in  fright,  while  the  rest  laugh, 
and  scramble  after  the  loose  coppers,  which  they 
may  let  fall  in  the  fray. 

When  a  panic  proceeds  from  any  matter  of 
fact,  it  is  commonly  such  as  this.  The  bank 
turns  away  some  bad  customer,  who  then 
spreads  a  report,  that  the  banks  are  "  very  short  f 
when,  immediately,  every  one  applies  for  twice 


MONSIEUR  IN  A  FRIGHT.  137 

as  much  as  he  wants.  In  Wall-street  phrase, 
"  The  offerings  become  very  large,"  and  then 
they  all  fight  and  jostle  each  other,  to  see  who 
shall  stand  first  at  the  counter. 

These  are  the  incipient  stages,  which  follow 
the  first  symptoms.  Its  increase  is  only  a  multi- 
plication and  enlargement  of  the  same  things  ; 
but  when  it  is  at  its  height,  there  is  the  greatest 
fun  and  fright,  frolick  and  fight,  imaginable. 
But  as  I  cannot  get  up  a  pantomime  show  on 
paper,  I  will  only  relate  a  few  anecdotes  of  ac- 
tual occurrence,  by  way  of  illustration. 

In  the  panic  of  1837,  a  merchant  of  high 
standing  in  Broad-street,  was  indebted  to  a  son 
of  Johnny  Crapeau,  in  the  sum  of  three  thou- 
sand dollars,  money  deposited  with  him  on  in- 
terest. One  morning,  while  the  merchant  was 
busily  engaged  in  his  correspondence,  Johnny 
came  in  in  great  trepidation,  and  announced  the 
object  of  his  visit,  by  saying;  "  Monsieur,  I 
ver  much  want  dat  moneys  que  vous  me  devez" 

Ah  !  I  thought  it  was  to  remain,  we  have  paid 
you  interest  for  it,  when  it  was  of  no  use  to  us, 

"  Eh  !  mon  Dieu  1 1  shall  lose." 

13* 


138  FOLLIES  OF  A  PANIC. 

"  If  you  are  alarmed  for  its  safety,  we  have  no 
objection  to  paying  you." 
"  Sare,  I  must  have." 

The  merchant  directed  a  check  to  be  drawn, 
for  the  principal  and  interest,  which  he  handed 
to  him,  with  a  receipt  for  his  signature. 

"  What  is  dis,  monsieur  f* 

"  That  is  a  check  for  the  money." 

"  Den  you  pay  ?" 

"  Yes,  you  demanded  your  pay." 

"Eh  !  monsieur,  (handing  back  the  check) — I 
was  alarm.  If  you  pay,  den  I  dont  want.  If 
you  no  cant  pay,  den  I  must  have." 

Another  instance  quite  as  reasonable,  and  of 
equal  notoriety,  was  a  French  gentleman  of  re- 
spectable property,  entirely  out  of  business,  and 
out  of  debt.  His  sympathies  were  so  much 
wrought  upon,  by  the  reported  distresses  of  the 
community,  that  he  began  to  be  alarmed  for 
himself;  and  accordingly  applied  to  his  bankers 
for  a  loan,  which  being  granted,  he  suffered  the 
money  to  lie  on  deposit :  but  his  excitement 
growing  warmer,  he  applied  again  and  again, 
when  being  expostulated  with  by  the  cashier, 
that  he  did  not  want  the  money,  and  that  others 


VILLAINIES  THEREOF. 


139 


did,  he  replied,  "sarel  am  afraid  dat  dis  ting 
will  me  ruin.  Sare,  I  must  have  moneys.  I 
shall  starve,  if  I  have  not  moneys.  I  must  have 
de  loan."  His  request  was  complied  with,  and 
when  the  excitement  was  over,  without  ever 
having  drawn  a  dollar  from  the  bank,  he  paid 
his  debts  with  the  loss  of  interest,  and  the  gain 
of  a  good  deal  of  mortification. 

These  are  some  of  the  follies  of  the  panic. 
The  villainies  also  deserve  sflme  notice. 

A  notable  whig,  and  a  friend  of  the  banks,  who 
thought  nothing  so  good  as  bank  notes,  so  long 
as  their  circulation  yielded  him  interest,  is  re- 
puted to  have  borrowed  all  he  could,  and  then  to 
have  drawn  the  specie,  which  he  hid  away  in  his 
cellar,  and  stood  sentry  at  the  door  himself.  Some 
supposed  that  he  was  alarmed  for  the  safety  of 
his  property,  but  more  are  of  opinion,  that  his 
object  was,  to  assist  in  breaking  the  banks,  and 
then  pay  his  debts  in  their  notes  at  a  large  dis- 
count. 

But  I  should  trespass  too  largely  on  time  and 
paper,  to  give  one  in  a  thousand  of  the  instances 
which  may  be  cited,  and  I  will  therefore  illus- 


/ 


140 


A  CASE  IN  MORALS. 


trate  the  truth,  by  relating  a  few  of  the  exploits 
of  a  notable  individual. 

Mr.  S.  was  a  merchant  of  wealth  and  large 
business.  Mr.  A.  his  debtor,  was  erroneously 
reputed  to  have  failed,  and  being  angry  and 
grieved  withal  by  the  slander,  he  went  to  his 
friend  S.  for  advice  and  consolation,  and  told 
him  that  so  far  from  having  failed,  with  a  very 
little  sacrifice,  he  could  pay  all  his  debts  on  de- 
mand. Mr.  S.  always  governed  by  that  cunning, 
which  supreme  selfishness  and  want  of  principle 
dictate,  advised  his  debtor  to  make  the  sacrifice, 
and  advertise  for  his  notes,  to  be  brought  in  for 
payment,  as  a  means  of  substantiating  his  credit 
beyond  all  doubt  in  future.  His  advice  was  fol- 
lowed, and  it  so  happened  that  Mr.  S's  was  the 
first  note  sent  in ;  and  report  says,  moreover,  that 
Tiaving  enquired  of  A.,  to  whom  he  was  indebted, 
he  went  to  the  persons  before  the  advertisement 
appeared,  and  bought  A's  notes  at  a  large  dis- 
count, and  sent  them  in  also. 

This  same  gentleman  had  many  customers  in 
his  business,  and  of  course  many  debtors.  Their 
notes  were  always  lodged  in  the  bank  for  col- 
lection, and  when  some  of  his  customers  came  to 


CHARACTER  IN,  AND  OUT,  OF  WALL-ST.  141 

him  for  partial  aid,  to  help  take  them  up,  his 
reply  was,  that  he  had  no  money  to  lend;  but, 
said  he,,  "you  ean  get  the  money  for  my  note,  and 
I  will  lend  you  that  for  the  ordinary  commis- 
sion of  2  1-2  per  cent.,  if  you  will  secure  me  for 
it."  The  security  was  willingly  given,  and  the 
customer  was  told,  if  the  bank  don't  discount  the 
notes,  the  brokers  will ;  and  as  soon  as  the  cus- 
tomer was  gone,  instructions  were  sent  to  the 
brokers,  "  if  such  a  note  appears,  buy  it  for  me 
at  double  rate  of  interest.  He  usually  got  pos- 
session of  his  notes  again  in  this  way,  for  be  it 
known  that  he  was  a  director  in  the  bank,  and 
to  add  to  the  virtue  of  his  liberality,  the  money 
which  should  have  been  lent  to  his  customers 
in  the  first  place,  was  lent  to  himself,  with  these 
views  and  for  these  purposes. 

I  know  not  under  what  class  of  morals  you 
will  place  this  kind  of  sagacity,  but  in  Wall- 
street  it  is  denominated  "  shrewdness/'  and  adds 
greatly  to  one's  respectability  and  consequence. 

But  that  you  may  not  be  deceived  in  your 
judgment,  I  will  go  farther  and  say,  that  what 
makes  a  character  in  Wall-street,  does  not  make 
one  out  of  it,    Here  the  standard  is  money,  but 


142     MONEY,  KNOWLEDGE  AND  HONESTY. 

elsewhere,  it  requires  some  other  ingredients  to 
arrive  at  any  level  much  above  the  lowest ;  and 
a  man  destitute  of  education,  intellect,  genius, 
principle,  morals  and  religion,  (though  last  here, 
yet  not  least,)  can  hardly  arrive  at  a  condition  of 
respectability,  much  beyond  his  own  conceit  of 
himself. 

I  never  knew  such  a  man  as  Mr.  S.,  who  was 
not  deficient  of  education  in  every  thing,  except 
how  to  get  money.  The  sum  of  his  knowledge 
is  limited  to  the  first  rule  of  arithmetic — addi- 
tion ;  and  although  his  wealth  and  credit  may 
enable  him  to  enlarge  the  sphere  of  his  observa- 
tion, still,  it  is  all  brought  to  the  same  practical 
use,  addition. 

Such  a  man  always  owes  his  little  elevation 
to  one  of  two  things,  to  fortuitious  circumstances, 
or  to  his  own  villainy  ;  and  his  mind  is  incapable 
of  appreciating  any  higher  standard  of  morals 
than  his  own.  As  I  once  heard  one  of  them  say, 
(inadvertently  no  doubt,  but  yet  in  the  honesty 
of  his  soul)  when  another  was  recommended 
to  him  for  credit,  on  the  ground  of  his  honesty, 
he  replied,  "  a  very  good  thing  for  the  owner, 
but  a  very  poor  commodity  in  the  market," 


SOMETHING  BY  WAY  OF  CONTRAST.  143 

It  is  not  against  the  people  of  Wall-stree^ 
or  Pearl-street,  or  South-street,  or  any  par- 
ticular branch  of  business  that  I  would  be 
be  understood  to  aim  the  bitter  shaft  of  sar- 
casm, but  against  those  individuals  of  known 
delinquency,    and    against    those  principles 
and  practices,  which  have,  of  late,  obtained  a 
tolerance  that,  in  times  gone  by,  would  not  have 
been  suffered.    And  were  it  proper  for  me  to  do 
so,  by  way  of  contrast,  I  would  here  sketch  a 
portrait  of  some  among  the  many  I  know,  who 
hold  a  just  balance,  and  the  even  tenor  of  their 
way,  whether  in  peace  or  in  panic  ;  but  I  could 
not  do  it  faithfully,  without  pointing  too  clearly 
at  those  who  have  no  need  of  my  commenda- 
tion, and  who  would  choose  that  their  reputa- 
tion should  rest  on  their  own  unaided  merits. 

Perhaps  you  have  already  anticipated  some  of 
the  advantages  which  may  arise  from  a  panic, 
but  my  description  would  be  incomplete,  were  I 
to  omit  to  sketch  a  few  of  them. 

The  spirit  of  our  institutions  does  not  admit 
of  the  concentration  or  entailment  of  property. 
And  here,  if  a  man  has  property,  and  will  act 
honestly,  he  need  not  wait  the  term  of  his  mor- 


144  ADVANTAGES  OP  PANICS. 

tal  existence,  for  his  children  to  ruin  themselves 
afterwards,  by  spending  it.  He  can  ruin  him- 
self, and  them  too,  by  simply  placing  himself  in 
the  vortex  of  a  single  panic.  But,  on  the  con- 
trary, if  his  tastes  lead  him  to  choose  the  former 
expedient,  this  affords  him  an  ample  field,  for  no 
scheme  can  be  devised  better  calculated  to  make 
the  rich  richer  than  this  is.  It  places  the  de- 
pendent debtor  wholly  in  the  power  of  the  cre- 
ditor, and  he  may  take  his  pound  of  flesh  with 
interest,  without  extracting  a  groan  or  a  sigh 
from  his  patient.  Nay,  he  will  rise  up  from  the 
operation,  and  thank  him  for  not  taking  two. 
A  panic,  then,  serves  to  hasten  changes  of  pro- 
perty from  one  to  another,  and  thereby  acts  in 
accordance  with  the  spirit  of  our  institutions, 
which  encourages  rotation. 
*  Its  advantages,  also,  to  the  separate  classes  of 
dealers,  who  inhabit  Wall-street,  deserve  each  a 
passing  notice. 

It  enables  the  stock-dealer,  who  has  heavy 
contracts  to  fulfil,  to  complete  his  engagements 
at  a  great  profit  to  himself.  It  is  of  no  conse- 
quence that  what  he  gains,  another  must  lose  ; 
the  advantage  to  him  is  unequivocal,  and,  ac- 


WHY  SOME   MEN   LOVE   PANICS.  145 


cordingly  we  find  that  these  gentlemen  are 
great  panic-makers  on  their  own  account. 

It  enables  exchange  dealers  to  demand  double 
rates  on  all  distant  places,  and,  although  the 
effect  is  to  reduce  the  value  of  all  debts  due 
from  those  sections  to  citizens  here  in  the  same 
proportion — yet,  he  is  benefited,  and  if  people 
will  not  pay  him  his  rates,  they  have  the  option 
to  go  and  collect  their  money  themselves.  The 
greater  and  the  more  frequent  the  panic,  there- 
fore, the  better  for  the  exchange  dealer.  It  also 
enables  those  Banks  which  have  a  speculative 
turn,  to  divert  their  capital  from  the  paltry  busi- 
ness of  discounting,  to  speculating  on  their  cus- 
tomers' wants,  by  becoming  dealers  in  exchange. 
It  greatly  increases  the  profits  of  the  Bank-note 
dealer,  by  enabling  him  to  increase  tne  rates  of 
discount,  and  one  peculiar  beauty  of  his  busi- 
ness is,  that  the  more  discount  he  asks,  the  more 
ready  his  customers  are  to  sell.  This  class  of 
dealers  are  deserving  the  particular  regards  of 
the  country  Banks,  since  their  interest  advances 
exactly  in  proportion  as  they  can  discredit  them. 

I  have  passed  hastily  over  all  these  classes, 
although  the  ways  and  means  by  which  each 


146  CONSEQUENCES  OP  PANIC. 


one  of  them  contrives  to  turn  a  panic  to  their  ad- 
vantage, contain  a  fund  sufficient  for  a  long 
evening's  entertainment.  But  my  descriptions 
are  not  intended  to  be  wire-drawn  ,  and,  besides, 
I  wish  to  leave  room  for  future  lucubrations, 
without  the  necessity  for  gleaning  too  closely. 

The  consequences  of  a  panic  are  those  por- 
tions of  it  which  "may  be  felt and  they  begin 
to  be  felt,  when  people  begin  to  count  their  losses. 
I  have  before  said  that  a  panic  was  like  fire,  and 
the  simile  holds  good,  except  in  one  particular. 
The  fire  destroys — the  panic  only  changes  pro- 
perty. In  both  cases  people  are  prodigiously 
frightened  ;  many  wounds  and  bruises  are  re- 
ceived, and  not  a  few  are  driven  from  their  busi- 
ness, and  made  houseless,  and  homeless.  In 
the  panic,  as  in  the  fire,  also,  there  are  both 
incendiaries  and  thieves,  and  it  is  a  matter  of 
doubt,  which  requires  the  most  vigilance  to  pro- 
tect one's  self  from. 

The  scenes  exhibited  when  a  pestilence  has 
has  passed  through  the  city — bringing  suffering 
and  bereavement  to  hundreds — when  a  storm 
nas  swept  along  the  coast,  strewing  its  shores 
with  the  ships  and  the  treasures,  which  the  day 


HOW  TO  PREVENT  PANIC. 


147 


before  floated  securely  on  the  bosom  of  the  waves 
— when  the  locusts  have  passed  over  the  fields, 
leaving  nothing  but  the  ravages  of  destruction 
behind — and  when  business  men  have  passed 
through  the  ordeal  of  a  panic — are  of  one  and 
the  same  character,  with  this  difference  only ; 
the  first  are  events  directed  by  Providence, 
which  men  have  not  the  power  to  avert,  and  the 
last  is  the  result  of  their  own  folly,  or  the  wicked 
designs  of  a  few.  But  it  will  be  said  that  no 
single  voice,  nor  even  many  voices,  can  control 
the  multitude — very  true  ;  but  when  a  mob 
takes  place,  if  every  man  would  go  straight 
about  his  own  business,  instead  of  stopping  to 
join  in  the  hue  and  cry — there  would  be  no  mob. 
And  if  the  magistrates  join  in  the  mob 
themselves,  there  is  no  authority  left  by  which 
to  control  it.  When  a  panic  in  money  matters 
begins,  there  seems  to  be  a  predisposition  in  the 
bystanders,  either  from  want  of  employment,  the 
love  of  story-telling,  or  the  desire  of  mischief,  to 
aid  all  they  can  in  spreading  it.  I  might  add, 
too,  that  many  newspapers  are  not  among  the 
least,  in  bestowing  their  influence  in  this  way. 
Some  of  them  wish  to  appear  wise  above  their 


4 

148  A  WORD  TO  CERTAIN  EDITORS. 

fellows — and  I  consider  it  not  at  all  derogatory 
to  the  general  character  of  ability  which  they 
possess,  to  say  that,  in  money  matters,  some  of 
their  editors  really  know  very  little  of  the  things 
about  which  they  prate.  I  believe  it  often 
happens  that  what  they  publish,  is  but 
the  proclamation  of  those  who  design  to 
increase  the  panic — and  if  they  are  to  be 
believed  themselves,  some  of  them  have  publish- 
ed things  contrary  to  their  better  judgment,  and 
perhaps  their  own  knowledge. 

They  can.  all  point  to  the  right  quarter,  and 
none  of  them  will  consider  this  a  slander,  but 
such  as  know  they  deserve  it. 

If,  therefore,  when  a  panic  begins,  men  would 
improve  what  they  know  for  themselves,  instead 
of  giving  their  neighbors  the  benefit  of  what  they 
don't  know,  but  have  only  heard  or  surmised — 
If  the  magistrates,  the  leaders  and  controllers 
of  the  money  market,  would  consult  something 
else  besides  their  own  interest,  in  promoting  it, 
or  their  immediate  safety,  by  escape — we  should 
have  a  less  frequent  occurrence  of  panic.  And, 
being  convinced  of  these  facts,  every  man  can 


I 

A  DARK  PICTURE.  149 

easily  understand,  and  no  doubt  does  under- 
stand, what  he  ought  to  do  in  such  a  case. 

But  I  perceive  I  am  getting  wide  from  my  sub- 
ject, and  prating  about  the  causes  of  a  panic,  in- 
stead of  its  consequences.  If  we  would  follow 
these  out  to  their  end,  we  must  leave  the  disor- 
ganized condition  of  business,  and  follow  men 
into  their  secret  communings  with  themselves  ; 
and  mark  the  anguish  of  despair,  the  bitterness  of 
cursing  and  disgust  with  their  fellow  men,  oc- 
casioned by  their  blasted  hopes — we  must  fol- 
low them  in  their  principles,  and  see  how  many 
are  corrupted  by  example,  and  how  many  have 
done  their  first  act  of  villainy,  in  the  vain  hope 
of  escaping  from  its  consequences.  We  must 
follow  them  in  their  morals,  and  see  how  many 
have,  by  the  excitement  of  circumstances,  lost 
their  self-respect  and  control.  And  we  must 
follow  them  to  their  homes,  and  see  the  desola- 
tion wrought  by  a  sheriff's  levy,  or  a  bill  in 
chancery,  and  witness  the  broken  repose,  and 
see  the  tearful  eyes  of  loved  ones  :  and  then  let 
any  one  make  a  levy  or  file  a  bill,  or  aid  in  a 
panic,  who  chooses. 

But  the  mind  sickens  at  the  picture,  and  I 


150     ENCOURAGEMENT  AND  KINDL V  ADVICE. 

turn  it  with  pleasure  to  a  better  light,  to  bring 
out  its  now  hidden  colors. 

Every  man  must  have  felt,  many  times  in  his 
life,  that  it  is  better  to  laugh  than  to  cry.  In  this 
case,  it  certainly  is,  the  proverb  of  Solomon  to  the 
contrary  notwithstanding  ;  and  among  the  many 
who,  in  the  last  few  years,  have  been  the  victims 
of  panic,  not  a  few  I  trust  are,  by  this  time,  ready 
to  agree  with  me.  Many  an  oak  has  been  shorn 
of  its  boughs,  and  lived  to  withstand  a  hundred 
storms  ;  many  a  ship,  dismantled  of  her  spars, 
has  gained  her  port,  -  and  floated  again  as  gal- 
lantly as  ever ;  and  many  a  man  bereft  of  his 
fortune,  has  lived  to  dispense  large  bounties  of 
charity  from  his  store  ;  many  a  one  too,  who  has 
long  fainted  beneath  the  load  of  his  griefs,  has 
lived  to  command  those  who  oppressed  him. 

Experience  is  sometimes  a  very  hard,  but  al- 
ways an  efficient  teacher  ;  and  those  who  have 
sulfered  will  have  the  satisfaction  to  know  better 
hereafter,  who  to  trust  and  what  to  trust,  and 
taught  to  rely  more  on  themselves.  And  if  afraid 
of  a  panic  in  future,  he  will  be  able  to  prepare 
himself  on  the  first  appearance  of  the  "  premoni- 
tory symptoms,"  and  when  he  sees  it  coming  on 


author's  leave-taking.  151 


the  wings  of  the  wind,  like  the  man  in  the  si- 
moon, he  may  then  safely  turn  his  back,  hold  his 
breath,  and  let  it  pass  by.  At  any  rate,  like  the 
people  I  described  in  the  church,  he  will  find 
himself  more  comfortable  and  happy  to  return, 
and  take  his  seat,  than  to  be  wandering  about  in 
the  cold,  among  the  multitude  without,  to  find 
out  what  has  happened. 

I  have  now  finished  six  days  in  Wall-street, 
which,  by  the  only  book  of  Ethics  that  I  have 
ever  learned,  are  the  whole  of  the  week  that  is  at 
my  disposal.  I  can  hardly  suppose  that  any 
man  in  his  senses,  has  followed  me  through  all 
the  descriptions  of  truth  and  villainy,  fact  and 
fiction,  sense  and  nonsense,  which  I  have  here 
given  ;  but  if  any  one  has  been  so  patient,  1  am 
bound  to  take  a  courteous  leave  of  him. 

First  I  am  bound  to  thank  him  for  the  "  high 
consideration"  given  me.  And  should  his  better 
feelings  tell  him  that  I  am  too  severe,  I  only 
request  him  to  ponder  what  is  true— 

Nor  set  down  aught  in  malice. 

But  if  when  he  shuts  this  book,  he  shall  say, 
amen,  he  is  entitled  to  my  thanks  for  his  pa- 
tience and  a  double  congee  for  his  approval 


152 


MO  HE  YET  TO  COME. 


No  one  will  of  course  take  any  thing  that  is 
here  written  to  himself,  unless  he  discovers  in  it 
some  features  of  his  own  portrait,  and  to  those 
who  can  make  such  discovery,  we  owe  neither 
apology  nor  sympathy. 

I  have  now  taken  leave  of  my  venerable  friend 
the  Chronicler ;  but  I  have  no  doubt  that  while 
he  lives,  he  will  continue  to  visit  Wall-street 
daily,  as  he  does  also  some  other  popular  places 
of  resort,  to  "  catch  the  manners  living  as  they 
rise."  And  although  I  shall  not  be  favored  with 
his  oral  communications  any  more,  yet  he  has 
promised  me  the  free  use  of  his  diary  while  he 
lives,  and  of  his  manuscripts  when  dead,  which 
are  said  to  contain  many  important  histories,  not 
only  of  things  long  past,  but  also  of  the  current 
events  of  the  day,  together  with  many  valuable 
reminiscences  intended  only  for  posthumous 
publication. 

But  should  the  good  people  of  Gotham,  take 
so  lively  an  interest  in  these  revelations,  as  to 
invite  their  continuance,  by  buying  this  book, 
I  can  not  say  that  such  inducement  will  not  call 
forth  another  compilation,  from  the  mass  of 
materials  now  at  my  disposal. 


